This post discusses a topic well known in the aviation field known as “situational awareness” (SA). I first learned about this topic several years ago when I was learning how to fly. The book I read is part of the larger “Controlling Pilot Error” series and is, not surprisingly, called Situational Awareness.
The summary of this text is as follows: (excerpt from Amazon.com)
Do you pilot with constantly acute mental accuracy and analysis? This book helps you to: overcome the passive pilot syndrome involved in many aviation accidents; learn to “prepare to be aware”; sharpen perception of your surroundings; build a second sense for detecting loss of SA; recover quickly from temporary disorientation; and learn about cockpit avionics that warn of SA losses.
When I read this book, I found this concept interesting because I (naively) believed I would be better prepared to deal with this problem once I got in the air. In the subsequent flight lesson I quickly learned how one can lose situational awareness and just how difficult it is to retrieve it.
In contrast to other flights, the day when I lost situational awareness came when there was an increased amount of traffic and I had not flown for 2-3 weeks. The combination of these two variables resulted in my loss of situational awareness.
When things become disorienting, whether it involves poor weather, increased radio chatter, or heavy traffic, pilots of all experience levels (not all) have a tendency to redirect their attention to the airplane’s controls and gauges vs. focusing their attention outside the cabin. Much to my surprise, I (not to mention my instructor!) found myself doing just that – it was almost like my eyes were somehow drawn to the interior of the cabin trying to make sense of what was going on. Needless to say, this can be very dangerous and has been a factor in many fatal accidents.
In many flight manuals and texts, the recurring message is: “Fly the Plane!”. The gauges and radios are there to supplement your experience, but they are not there to keep the plane in the air – that’s your primary responsibility.
While this concept sounds simple enough – it can be very challenging. To learn how to manage complexity and to mentally “remove” yourself from extraneous “distractions” takes practice and understanding.
In my next post, I’ll share some of the recommendations from the text that help one understand, maintain and re-gain situational awareness. While this has applicability to flight, it also has applicability in normal life – including the workplace.