CHAPTER 3. DEALING WITH HAZARDOUS ATTITUDES
13. HAZARDOUS ATTITUDES. ADM addresses the following five hazardous attitudes.
a. Antiauthority (don't tell me!). This attitude is found in people who do not like anyone telling them what to do. In a sense they are saying no one can tell me what to do. They may be resentful of having someone tell them what to do or may regard rules, regulations, and procedures as silly or unnecessary. However, it is always your prerogative to question authority if you feel it is in error.
b. Impulsivity (do something quickly!) is the attitude of people who frequently feel the need to do something-anything-immediately. They do not stop to think about what they are about to do, they do not select the best alternative, and they do the first thing that comes to mind.
c. Invulnerability (it won't happen to me).
Many people feel that accidents happen to others, but never to them. They know accidents can nappen, and they know that anyone can be affected. They never really feel or believe that they will be personally involved. Pilots who think this way are more likely to take chances and increase as being able to make a great deal of difference in what happens to them. When things go well, the pilot is apt to think that's good luck. When things go badly, the pilot may feel that someone is out to get me, or attribute it to bad luck. The pilot will leave the action to others, for better or worse.
Sometimes, such pilots will even go along with unreasonable requests just to be a "nice guy."
14. ANTIDOTES FOR HAZARDOUS ATTI- TUDES.
a. Hazardous attitudes which contribute to poor pilot judgment can be effectively counteracted by redirecting that hazardous attitude so that appropriate action can be taken. Recognition of hazardous thoughts is the first step in neutralizing them in the ADM process. This chapter is designed to familiarize the pilot with a means of counteracting hazardous attitudes with an appropriate antidote When a pilot recognizes a thought as hazardous, the pilot should label that thought as hazardous, then correct that thought by stating the corresponding antidote. Antidotes should be memorized for each of the hazardous attitudes so that they automatically come to mind when needed.
Macho (I can do it). Pilots who are always trying to prove that they are better than anyone else are thinking I can do it - I'll show them. Pilots with this type of attitude will try to prove themselves by taking risks in order to impress others. While this pattern is thought to be a male characteristic, women are equally suscep-
who think what's the use? do not see themselves
15. ANTIDOTE RECALL EXERCISE.
hazardous attitude antidotes (figure 4) should be learned thoroughly and practiced. Make a copy of the Antidote Recall Exercise form (appendix 4) and, without referring to the text, write the characteristic thought for each hazardous attitude and its appropriate antidote. Check the statements and continue if they are correct. If not, continued study of the antidotes is recommended until they are memorized.
Chap 3 Par 13 11
AC 60-22
16. THE IMPORTANCE OF REINFORCE- MENT EXERCISES. The basic definitions, the self-assessment test, the hazardous attitudes, and the antidotes represent the foundation for understanding the factors of good ADM. However, they represent only about 10 percent of the important process of leaming and putting ADM into practice.
The other 90 percent can be achieved only through completion of all of the situation exercises in the appropriate manual (i.e., Student/Private, Instrument, Commercial, etc.) and applying the principles leamed to each and every flight. Some examples of the reinforcement exercises from each of the manuals follow. These are presented as examples of the types of decision errors which have contributed to accidents in the past.
HAZARDOUS ANTIDOTE
ATTITUDE Antiauthority: Don't Follow the rules. They tell me. are usually right.
Impulsivity: Do Not so fast. Think something quickly. first.
Invulnerability: It It could happen to me.
won't happen to me.
Macho: I can do it. Taking chances is foolish.
Resignation: What's I'm not helpless. I can the use? make a difference.
FIGURE 4. THE FIVE ANTIDOTES
17. INSTRUCTIONS FOR USING REIN- FORCEMENT EXERCISES. Read each of the following situations. At the end of each situation, an alternative should be selected which best illustrates the reactions of a pilot who is thinking a particular hazardous attitude. After the most appropriate alternative is selected, refer to the explanation of alternatives page for the proper response. This page will provide the correct answer. If the selection is accurate, proceed to the next situation. If an incorrect alternative was selected, the reader should review the situation again and select another alternative. Repeat the exercise until the correct alternative is selected.
12 12/13/91
a. The Impulsivity Hazardous Attitude.
(1) Situation: As you enter the landing pattern, you normally lower the flaps. The tower suddenly changes the active runway. Distracted, you forget to use the before-landing checklist. On short final you find yourself dangerously low with a high sink rate. Glancing down, you realize that you forgot to extend the flaps. Which of the following alternatives best illustrates the impulsivity reaction?
(i) You feel that nothing is going to happen because you have made intentional no-flap landings before.
(ii) You laugh and think, "Boy, this low approach will impress people on the ground."
(iii) You think that using a checklist is a stupid requirement.
(iv) You immediately grab the flap handle and add full flaps.
(v) You think that it all depends on whether you get an updraft or downdraft now.
(2) Explanation of Alternatives:
(i) Feeling that nothing bad can happen suggests the invulnerability hazardous attitude (it won't happen to me). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(ii) When you are thinking about impressing people on the ground, watch out for the macho hazardous attitude (I can do it). This can cost you dearly. Go back to the situation and select another alterative.
(iii) Thinking that checklists are stupid suggests that you feel that aircraft designers, the Goverment, and your instructor, all of whom urge the use of checklists, are wrong. This suggests the antiauthority hazardous attitude (don't tell me). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
Chap 3 Par 16
12/13/91
(iv) Right! Immediately adding full flaps without thinking is an example of the impulsivity hazardous attitude (do something quickly). Unfortunately, in this situation, full flaps will probably only increase the sink rate. Go on to the next situation.
(v) If you are convinced that it is up to the wind, this implies the hazardous attitude of resignation (what's the use). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(3) A Good Attitude. Distractions can be dangerous--always use your checklist.
b. The Antiauthority Hazardous Attitude.
(1) Situation: You approach the VOR and the controller asks if you want to execute the entire VOR procedure or will you accept a right turn of more than 90° to intercept the final approach course. You state that you will make the tum directly onto final at 2,000 feet although this will press you to get properly established on final.
Which of the following alternatives best illustrates the antiauthority reaction?
(i) It was not your idea to make the approach like this.
(ii) A controller is not going to influence the way I fly.
(iii) You do not need the full approach; you know you are a good instrument pilot.
(iv) You are in a hurry and do not wish to bother with the full approach.
(v) You know the controllers will be impressed with this approach.
(2) Explanation of Alternatives.
(1) By assuming someone else has responsibility for your approach, you exhibit the resignation attitude (what's the use?). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
Chap 3 Par 17 AC 60- 22
(ii) Right! The regulations are for someone else attitude assumes controllers are interfering with your business. You are thinking in an antiauthority manner. Go on to the next situa-
(iii) Here you are taking the invulnerability stand (it won't happen to me). You think of yourself as invulnerable. Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(iv) This is the impulsivity hazardous attitude (I must act now, there's no time). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(v) The desire to impress another influences your decision. This is the macho attitude (I'll show you - I can do it). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(3) A Good Attitude. Make as much time available on an approach as possible. You may need it.
c. The Macho Hazardous Attitude.
(1) Situation: On a trip to the west coast, you make an en route refueling stop at an airport in the Rockies. After refueling, the density altitude prior to your departure is reported as 10,500 feet. You are at maximum takcoff weight when you depart. At the present rate of climb, you will just barely clear the minimum crossing altitude (MCA) at the next intersection on your flight route.
Which of the following alternatives best illustrates the macho reaction?
(i) There is really nothing you can do about it; it is up to air traffic control (ATC) to make sure you clear.
(ii) The MCA's have plenty of leeway for clearance. So what if you are a little low.
(iii) You are a good pilot and will make it.
AC 60-22
(iv) When you see that you cannot climb enough, you immediately inform ATC of your situation without determining your intentions.
(v) Mountain flying is not any different from any other flying and you have never run into any problems before. Nothing will hap-
(2) Explanation of Alternatives.
(i) Assuming someone else is responsible for you is the resignation hazardous attitude. Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(i1) This is the antiauthority hazardous attitude (don't tell me). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(iii) Right! Thinking I'll show you - I can do it, is the macho hazardous attitude.
(iv) Acting before thinking, this is the impulsivity hazardous attitude (do something quickly). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(v) This is the invulnerability hazardous attitude (it won't happen to me). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(3) A Good Attitude. Be aware of your limitations and don't exceed them.
d. The Invulnerability Hazardous Attitude.
(1) Situation: While preflighting the pressurization system, you discover that the rate adjustment control is inoperative. Knowing that you can manually control the cabin pressure, you opt to disregard this discrepancy and depart on your trip. You will have to handle the system yourself. Which of the following alternatives best illustrates the invulnerability reaction?
14 12/13/91
(i) It's too late to fix it now.
(ii) You can handle a little problem like this.
(iii) What's the worst that could happen?
(iv) I certainly didn't break it. It's not my fault.
(v) You barely need the pressurization at the filed altitude anyway.
(2) Explanation of Alternatives.
(i) This is the impulsivity hazardous attitude (there's no time - I must do something quickly). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(ii) This is the macho hazardous attitude showing through (I can do it). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(iii) Right! Nothing bad is going to happen to you because of your invulnerability. Go on to the next situation.
(iv) This is the resignation hazardous attitude - what's the use? - where someone else is responsible. Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(v) This type of thinking is characteristic of the antiauthority attitude (rules and regulations are made to be broken). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(3) A Good Attitude. Settle for nothing less than full operating systems.
e. The Resignation Hazardous Attitude.
(1) Situation: Your copilot shows up for duty and you notice that the copilot's behavior is Chap 3 Par 17
12/13/91 somewhat out of the ordinary. You know your copilot has had a cold. When questioned, the copilot said maybe it was the antihistamine that he/she took the night before. Although your aircraft requires a crew of two, you decide to ignore your copilot's drowsiness and inattention.
Which of the following alternatives best illustrates the resignation reaction?
(i) You could fly this jet by yourself anyway.
(ii) You two have flown together many times, and everything has always worked out fine.
(iii) What else can you do? He was assigned this flight too.
(iv) He/she might not be within the regulations, but he/she says he/she's okay and that's what counts.
(v) There is really no time to call another copilot now.
Chap 3 Par 17 AC 60-22
(2) Explanation of Alternatives.
(i) This is a trait of the macho hazardous attitude (I can do it). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(ii) This is the invulnerability attitude (it won't happen to me). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(iii) Right! When you feel as if it is out of your control, you are exhibiting the resignation hazardous attitude.
(iv) This is the antiauthority hazardous attitude (the rules and regulations don't apply to me). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(v) This is the impulsivity hazardous attitude (do something quickly). Go back to the situation and select another alternative.
(3) A Good Attitude. Don't let others do your thinking for you.
15 (and 16)
CHAPTER 4. STRESS AND FLYING
18. WHAT IS STRESS? Stress is a term used to describe the body's nonspecific response to demands placed on it, whether these demands are pleasant or unpleasant in nature. The demands on a pilot can range from unexpected windshear encountered on a landing to a lost wallet. Piloting the aircraft is the pilot's responsibility. Therefore, a healthy pilot should pertorm at his/her optimum level and make decisions to the best of his/her ability. Numerous physical and physiological conditions in a pilot's personal and professional life, as well as the nature of flight itself, can hamper this ability. Even though a pilot holds a medical certificate stating that the pilot meets the health requirements for a particular type of flight operation, the decision whether the pilot is fit to fly is strictly the pilot's.
19. HOW MUCH STRESS IS IN YOUR LIFE?
a. If you hope to succeed at reducing stress associated with crisis management in the air or with your job, it is essential to begin by making a personal assessment of stress in all areas of your life. You may face major stressors such as a loss of income, serious illness, death of a family member, change in residence, or birth of a baby, plus a multitude of comparatively minor positive and negative stressors. These major and minor stressors have a cumulative effect which constitutes your total stress-adaption capability which can vary from year to year. To enhance your awareness about the sources of stress in your life, the life change profile questionnaire (appendix 5) is presented. Place a check in the Happened column if you have experienced the event described in the last 12 months. Total your score at the end of the questionnaire.
b. The more change you have, the more likely you are to suffer a decline in health. As a rule of thumb, if you score over 20 checks, mostly in the top half of the checklist, you have an 80 percent chance of a serious health change. If you have about 20 checks distributed over the checklist, you have about a 50 percent chance of illness in the near future. Each of us has personal stress-adaption limitations. When we exceed this level, stress overload may lead to poor health or illness.
20. IS STRESS BAD? Stress is a response to a set of circumstances that induces a change in a pilot's current physiological and/or psychological patterns of functioning forcing the pilot to adapt to these changes. Stress is an inevitable and necessary part of life that adds motivation to life and heightens a pilot's response to meet any challenge.
In fact, performance of a task will generally improve with the onset of stress, but will peak and then begin to degrade rapidly as stress levels exceed a pilot's adaptive abilities to handle the
21. HANDLING STRESS IN FLYING. Accidents often occur when flying task requirements exceed a pilot's capabilities. A superior pilot uses superior judgment to avoid stressful situations which might call for use of superior skills. The difference between pilot capabilities and task requirements is the margin of safety (figure 5). In this example, the margin of safety is minimal during the approach under ideal conditions. For this pilot, a cold and fatigue may reduce the minimal margin of safety as well as the overall margin of safety throughout the flight.
Stress is insidious. Stress has a gradual and cumulative effect that develops slowly, so slowly that stress can be well established before becoming apparent. A pilot may think that he/she is handling everything quite well, when in fact there are subtle signs that the pilot is beyond his/her ability to respond appropriately.
b. Stress is cumulative. A generalized stress reaction can develop as a result of accumulated stress. There is a limit to a pilot's adaptive nature.
This limit, the stress tolerance level, is based on a pilot's ability to cope with the situation. If the number or intensity of the stressors becomes too great, the pilot is susceptible to an environmental overload. At this point, a pilot's performance begins to decline and judgment deteriorates.
Chap 4 Par 18 17
PILOT CAPABILITIES
MARGIN OF SAFETY
EFFORT REQUIREMENTS TASK
PRE FLIGHT HOVER TAKE OFF CRUISE APPROACH & LANDING HOVER TIME FIGURE 5. THE MARGIN OF SAFETY C. Signs of inadequate coping. The indicators of excessive stress often show as three types of symptoms: (1) emotional, (2) physical, and (3) behavioral. These symptoms differ depending upon whether aggression is focused inward or outward. Those individuals who typically turn their aggressive feelings inward often demonstrate the emotional symptoms of depression, preoccupation, sadness, and withdrawal. The individual who typically takes out frustration on other people or objects exhibits few physical symptoms.
other hand, emotional symptoms may show up as overcompensation, denial, suspicion, paranoia, agitation, restlessness, defensiveness, excess sensitivity to criticism, argumentativeness, arrogance, and hostility.
d. Life Stress Management. There are many techniques available that can help reduce the stress in your life or help you cope with it better. Not all of the following ideas may be the solution, but some of them should be effective for you.
(1) Become knowledgeable about stress.
(2) Take a realistic assessment of yourself.
(3) Take a systematic approach to problem solving.
(4) Develop a life style that will buffer against the effects of stress.
(5) Practice behavioral management techniques.
(6) Establish and maintain a strong support network.
Cockpit Stress Management.
cockpit stress management begins with good life stress management. Many of the stress coping techniques practiced for life stress management are not usually practical in flight. Rather, you must condition yourself to relax and think rationally Chap 4 18 Par 21
12/13/91 when stress appears. The following checklist outlines some thoughts on cockpit stress management.
(1) Avoid situations that distract you from flying the aircraft.
(2) Reduce your workload to reduce stress levels. This will create a proper environment in which to make good decisions.
(3) If an emergency does occur, be calm.
Think for a moment, weigh the alternatives, then
(4) Maintain proficiency in your aircraft;
proficiency builds confidence. Familiarize yourself thoroughly with your aircraft, its systems, and emergency procedures.
(5) Know and respect your own personal limits.
(6) Do not let little mistakes bother you until they build into a big thing. Wait until after you land, then "debrief" and analyze past actions.
(7) If flying is adding to your stress, either stop flying or seek professional help to manage your stress within acceptable limits.
Flight Fitness. A "Go/No-Go" decision is made before each flight. The pilot should not only preflight check the aircraft, but also his/herself on each and every flight. A pilot should ask,Could I pass my medical examination Chap 4 Par 21 AC 60- 22 right now?" If the pilot cannot answer with an absolute "yes," then the pilot should not fly. The following checklist is intended for a pilot's personal preflight use. A pilot may elect to carry a copy in his/her flight bag and onboard the aircraft.
(1) Do I feel well? Is there anything wrong with me at all?
(2) Have I taken any medication in the last 12 hours?
(3) Have I had as little as one ounce of alcohol in the last 12 hours?
(4) Am I tired? Did I get a good night's sleep last night?
(5) Am I under undue stress? Am I emotional right now?
(6) Have I eaten a sensible meal and taken in a good load of protein? Do I have a protein snack, such as cheese, meat or nuts, aboard?
(7) Am I dehydrated? Do I need to take noncarbonated liquids such as water or fruit juices?
(8) Am I equipped with sunglasses, ear protectors, appropriate clothing?
19 (and 20)
CHAPTER 5. RISK MANAGEMENT
22. ASSESSING RISK. Risk management is the responsibility of everyone involved in aviation.
The flight operations manager, for example, who is faced with the decision as to just how hard to push a pilot to go, becomes a party to the risk management process. It is understandable from an economic point of view that the mail, checks, boss, passenger, whatever, must get through.
question "Is the success of the task worth the riski must always be kept in mind during decision making. Risk management in ADM is discussed in detail in DOT/FAA/PM-86/43, Aeronautical Decision Making for Instrument Pilots.
23. THE DECIDE MODEL.
A good tool to use in making good aeronautical decisions is the Decide Model (figure 6).
The Decide Model, comprised of a six step process, is intended to provide the pilot with a logical way of approaching decision making. The Decide Model is described in greater detail DOT/FAA/PM-86/43, Aeronautical Making for Instrument Pilots.
b. The six elements of the Decide Model represent a continuous loop decision process which can be used to assist a pilot in the decision making process when he/she is faced with a change in a situation that requires a judgment. This Decide Model is primarily focused on the intellectual component, but can have an impact on the motivational component of judgment as well. If a pilot practices the Decide Model in all decision making, its use can become very natural and could result in better decisions being made under all types of
1. Detect. The decision maker detects the fact that change has occurred.
2. Estimate. The decision maker estimates the need to counter or react to the change.
3. Choose. The decision maker chooses a desirable outcome (in terms of success) for the flight.
4. Identify. The decision maker identifies actions which could successfully control the change.
5. Do. The decision maker takes the necessary action.
6. Evaluate. The decision maker evaluates the effects) of his action countering the change.
FIGURE 6. The DECIDE MODEL Chap 5 Par 22 21 (and 22)
CHAPTER 6. IDENTIFYING THE ENEMY
24. GENERAL.
a. Most preventable accidents have one common factor: human error, rather than a mechanical malfunction. Pilots who are involved in accidents generally know what went wrong. Very often, the pilot was aware of the possible hazards when the decision the pilot made led to the wrong course of action. In the interest of expediency, cost savings, self-gratification, or other often irrelevant factors, the incorrect course of action was chosen. This cycle of decisions began at the flight planning desk with decisions made on how much fuel to carry, the route, the alternate route, and adequate weather conditions. This cycle continues throughout the flight with decisions made on speed, altitude, and when to descend.
Each flight is a sequence of choices with certain milestones in the sequence that require particular determination and discretion.
Flying is rapidly changing from a physical to a mental task. Initial instruction to manipulate and control an aircraft requires approximately 1 to 2 years. However, training to command an aircraft intelligently involves a decade or two of experience and periodic recurrent training. ADM is designed to reduce the extremely long and sometimes painful process of leaming how to make good judgment decisions based upon experience alone. While it is true that simple errors of equipment operation are seldom serious, mistakes in judgment can be fatal.
25. PERSONAL CHECKLIST. One essential decision point before a flight is the checklist of basic principles that cannot be compromised. This personal checklist should include the fundamental tenets applicable to every flight. Once a pilot decides what not to do, the decision on what needs to be done becomes clear. Consider the following never's as factors that contribute significantly to unsafe flight:
Flight while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, including applicable prescription drugs, is a never. Several drinks of an alcoholic beverage will influence thought and reaction for approximately 24 hours, while heavy drinking will have lingering effects for up to 36 hours or longer.
Effects from the use of marijuana remain in the system for at least a week. The concept should be obvious that flight safety is measurably compromised within those time periods. The side effects and duration of all prescription drugs are well documented and available from a local pharmacist, the family physician, a drug addiction agency, or the Surgeon General.
b. Flight with a known medical deficiency is never expedient or legal (FAR § 61.53).
c. Flight outside the certified flight envelope is never safe. Weight, balance, speed, maneuvers, G-loading, and flight in known icing should be limited to flight manual parameters. Beyond that, you are in the wilderness and all discoveries could be unhappy experiences.
Flight with less than the required minimum fuel is never reasonable. The applicable FAR's are sufficiently liberal. Twenty or 30 minutes fuel in VFR conditions (depending on aircraft category) and acceptable IF reserves should be adequate to provide for contingencies.
e. VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions is never justified.
Descent below the applicable minimum enroute altitude anywhere is never justified.
Casual neglect of any applicable checklist is never justified. A checklist may be larger or smaller, however, certain standards should be established for all flights so that the first decision point is whether or not to begin the flight. This can be the toughest decision.
Aircraft accident statistics show that pilots should be conducting preflight checklists on themselves as well as their aircraft. Pilot impairment contributes to many more accidents than failures of aircraft systems. The following version of the "I'M SAFE" personal checklist (figure 7) contains all of the most common categories of pilot Chap 6 Par 24 23
AC 60-22 impairment and can easily be committed to memory.
26. HOW TO BE A SAFE PILOT.
a. A pilot does not have to be a genius to be a safe pilot. However, a pilot should be an emo- 12/13/91 smoking, speeding, overeating, etc.), the pilot is, nonetheless, driven by his or her own emotions.
d. Existing rules would go a long way to remedy the accident rate; however, personality traits that cause irrational behavior also make pilots prone to disregard the rules that would assure safe operations.
1. Illness. Do I have any symptoms?
2. Medication. Have I been taking prescription or over-the-counter drugs?
3. Stress. Am I under psychological pressure from the job? Do I have money, health, or family problems?
4. Alcohol. Have I been drinking within 8 hours? Within 24 hours?
5. Fatigue. Am I tired and not adequately rested?
6. Eating. Have I eaten enough of the proper foods to keep adequately nourished during the entire flight?
FIGURE 7. The "I'M SAFE" Checklist tionally stable person who can accept the fact that he/she is not in possession of all facts or skills for all situations and be willing to accept the recommendations of those who specialize in evaluating, assessing, and administering aviation procedures.
Reaching a consensus on all matters within the aviation community can prove difficult, if not impossible. Even though the rules and procedures are designed to serve most of the people most of the time, a pilot can always argue for different ways of doing things. An experienced, mature pilot will accept and follow the rules and procedures which will benefit the aviation community.
The immature, emotionally unbalanced pilot nas strong tendencies to satisfy a personal need regardless of the consequences.
Some pilots break rules simply for the immediate gratification of some emotional need.
Even though the pilot may know that this emotional need is not considered a healthy habit (e.g.,
e. When a pilot exhibits one or more of the five hazardous attitudes or irrational behavior, that pilot may also be exposing any emotional weaknesses in his/her personality.
27. DEVELOPMENT OF GOOD DECISION MAKING SKILLS.
The development of good decision making skills is far more difficult than developing good flying skills, but it can be done. Good judgment may mean not flying while under the influence of any medication, when it is too windy, or refusing a revenue flight when it would require flying in marginal weather.
b. Many pilots fail to make proper decisions;
sometimes due to a lack of knowledge, but too often the result of a human tendency to rationalize a situation until it appears justifiable. When a pilot really wants to do something (such as loading that one last passenger when close to maximum gross Chap 6 24 Par 25
12/13/91 weight, or performing a high speed, low altitude pass), the pilot can generally make himself/herself believe that it was all right to do it. A pilot can be his/her own worst enemy.
In addition to the FAR, AC's, articles in magazines, books written by expert pilots and instructors, Pilot Proficiency Programs, Airman's Information Manual, NOTAM's, Airworthiness Directives, and Biennial Flight Reviews, there are some do's and do not's that can ensure the prevention of most accidents. All of this information is safety-oriented. Not following this safety-oriented information is similar to not following the advice of a doctor or lawyer.
d. The most important decision a pilot will make is to learn and adhere to published rules, procedures, and recommendations. Pilots, by learning and adhering to these published rules and procedures, can take most hazards out of flying.
Chap 6 Par 27 AC 60- 22 When a pilot operates an aircraft, human lives are held in the balance. Therefore, a pilot has a moral responsibility to operate in the safest possible
e. Aviation has reached a new plateau. Acquiring aeronautical knowledge, airmanship skills, and proficiency are relatively easy. Navigation has been reduced to calculator simplicity. Moderr autopilots and electronic displays have significantly reduced a pilot's workload. Today's technology requires administrative management and aeronauti cal decision making skills as prerequisites for safety and efficiency.
28. SUCCESSFUL DECISION MAKING.
Successful decision making is measured by a pilot's consistent ability to keep himself/herself, any passengers, and the aircraft in good condition regardless of the conditions of any given flight.
25 (and 26)