Crew Resource Management
In finding its place in the world, human flight has progressed at an extraordinary rate. After all, it was just over 100 years ago that the Wright brothers made their first short flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. By today’s standards the first powered aircraft was little more than a large box kite. Within a very short time, large aircraft were developed with the capability of carrying incredible numbers of passengers and cargo across vast distances. It is fascinating to think how quickly humans were able to advance technology to the point of leaving the Earths atmosphere.
In these early periods of technological advancements, often when accidents occurred, they could be traced to mechanical failures. As the technologies …show more content…
The goal was to improve managerial and team aspects within the cockpit. This narrow focus gave itself to the original term known as Cockpit Resource Management. As the concept matured, understanding that it could play a beneficial role in areas outside the cockpit, led to the acceptance of the current term Crew Resource Management.
CRM came into being in the 1970’s as the result of studies concluding that human factors, and not always mechanical issues, are major contributors to many accidents. These studies, determined that failures in communication and coordination of team members, were far more probable to end in accidents and incidents than result from equipment failure. (Kanki, Helmreich, & Anca, 2010) Contributing to the issue was the culture of cockpit crews at the time. Most flight captains were treated to be, and many believed themselves, beyond reproach. This was at least patricianly the result of many of the early pilots receiving flight training through military service. These pilots, along with their already developed flight experience, brought along with them the authoritative culture fostered throughout the armed forces. It was somewhat justifiable that, even in life-or-death situations, many crew members feared for their careers …show more content…
In 2008, the National Safety Council developed a table illustrating the odds of dying over a lifetime; they determined, a person has a 1 in 98 chance of dying in an automobile accident, while the same person has a 1 in 7,178 chance of dying in an aircraft accident. This means a person is about 73 times more likely to be killed on the road than in the air (Locsin, 2008). The unavoidable problem of perception in aviation is that, unlike auto accidents, air disasters result in a far greater loss of life and economic cost in a single incident. While an accident on the road may make the local evening news, major aircraft accidents will likely be international news for days, weeks, and possibly months to years. This lends itself to an increased perceived risk. The apparent risk coupled with the potentially catastrophic loss of life and economic cost, necessitates constant aspirations toward the impossible goal of zero accidents. In this pursuit, CRM has proved to be an invaluable
In finding its place in the world, human flight has progressed at an extraordinary rate. After all, it was just over 100 years ago that the Wright brothers made their first short flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. By today’s standards the first powered aircraft was little more than a large box kite. Within a very short time, large aircraft were developed with the capability of carrying incredible numbers of passengers and cargo across vast distances. It is fascinating to think how quickly humans were able to advance technology to the point of leaving the Earths atmosphere.
In these early periods of technological advancements, often when accidents occurred, they could be traced to mechanical failures. As the technologies …show more content…
The goal was to improve managerial and team aspects within the cockpit. This narrow focus gave itself to the original term known as Cockpit Resource Management. As the concept matured, understanding that it could play a beneficial role in areas outside the cockpit, led to the acceptance of the current term Crew Resource Management.
CRM came into being in the 1970’s as the result of studies concluding that human factors, and not always mechanical issues, are major contributors to many accidents. These studies, determined that failures in communication and coordination of team members, were far more probable to end in accidents and incidents than result from equipment failure. (Kanki, Helmreich, & Anca, 2010) Contributing to the issue was the culture of cockpit crews at the time. Most flight captains were treated to be, and many believed themselves, beyond reproach. This was at least patricianly the result of many of the early pilots receiving flight training through military service. These pilots, along with their already developed flight experience, brought along with them the authoritative culture fostered throughout the armed forces. It was somewhat justifiable that, even in life-or-death situations, many crew members feared for their careers …show more content…
In 2008, the National Safety Council developed a table illustrating the odds of dying over a lifetime; they determined, a person has a 1 in 98 chance of dying in an automobile accident, while the same person has a 1 in 7,178 chance of dying in an aircraft accident. This means a person is about 73 times more likely to be killed on the road than in the air (Locsin, 2008). The unavoidable problem of perception in aviation is that, unlike auto accidents, air disasters result in a far greater loss of life and economic cost in a single incident. While an accident on the road may make the local evening news, major aircraft accidents will likely be international news for days, weeks, and possibly months to years. This lends itself to an increased perceived risk. The apparent risk coupled with the potentially catastrophic loss of life and economic cost, necessitates constant aspirations toward the impossible goal of zero accidents. In this pursuit, CRM has proved to be an invaluable