ALWAYS HAVE A PLAN!IT MAY NOT ALWAYS BE THE BEST

ONE…….BUT HAVE ONE!

PRESENTATION BY CAPTAIN ALAN CARTER.AUGUST 2013.

SO WHAT ARE WE GOING TO TALK ABOUT TODAY?

I SUGGEST WE DISCUSS THE MAIN FACTOR WHICH I BELIEVE IS AFFECTING FLIGHT SAFETY TODAY………

……….THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE A GOOD START!

SO LET’S HAVE A LOOK AT THE OUTCOMES OF THIS PROBLEM.

THE FOLLOWING SLIDES ALL RELATE TO

ONE

COMMON THEME…….

CULTURE…………….FOREIGN PILOT AFRAID TO DIE!!!!!!!! (NOT RACIST…BUT….)

PROCEDURES……..INCORRECTLY CARRIED OUT…….BOTH AIRBORNE AND ON THE GROUND.

BLAME……………….AUTOFLIGHT SYSTEM…….NOOOOOOOOOOO.

CAPTAIN: You're pitching up. Synthetic voice: Sink rate. Pull up.CAPTAIN: Go on pull. Synthetic voice: Pull up. CO-PILOT: Let's go Pull up Pull up Pull up. Synthetic voice: Pull up. Stall. Stall. Pull up. Priority right. Pull Up. CO-PILOT: [Expletive] we're going to crash. ... This can't be true.

Synthetic voice: Pull up. CO-PILOT: But what's happening? CAPTAIN: (Ten) degrees pitch attitude. Synthetic voice: Pull up.

CULTURE…………….I CAN’T EVEN BEGIN TO GUESS WHAT THE CAPTAIN WAS THINKING. (FIRSTLY, WHY LEAVE THE FLIGHT DECK IN THE FIRST PLACE NEAR THE ITCZ)

PROCEDURES……..INCORRECTLY CARRIED OUT…….(IT’S AN AEROPLANE, FLY IT LIKE ONE.)

BLAME…………….....AUTOFLIGHT SYSTEM…….NOOOOOOOOOOO.

CULTURE…………….I CAN’T EVEN BEGIN TO GUESS WHAT THE CAPTAIN WAS THINKING….. …....AGAIN……

PROCEDURES……..INCORRECTLY CARRIED OUT.

BLAME…………….....AUTOFLIGHT SYSTEM…….NO…….(THOUGH THE AUTO-THROTTLE SYSTEM WAS CRITICIZED.)

CAPTAIN…….NOT CLIMB? WHAT AM I TO DO?

CO-PILOT…...YOU MAY LEVEL OFF. ALTITUDE OKAY. I AM SELECTING THE ALTITUDE HOLD SIR.

CAPTAIN…….SELECT, SELECT.

CAPTAIN…....THRUST LEVERS. THRUST. THRUST. THRUST. THRUST.

CO-PILOT…...RETARD.

CAPTAIN…....THRUST. DON’T PULL BACK. DON’T PULL BACK. DON’T PULL BACK.

CAPTAIN…….DON’T PULL BACK….PLEASE DON’T PULL BACK.

CAPTAIN…….WHAT’S HAPPENING?

CO-PILOT…..OH WHAT’S HAPPENING?

END OF RECORDING……….

CULTURE………….I CAN’T EVEN BEGIN TO GUESS WHAT THE CREW MEMBERS WERE THINKING….. …………AGAIN……..

PROCEDURES…..INCORRECTLY CARRIED OUT…….SITUATIONAL AWARENESS ZERO.

BLAME…….........AUTOFLIGHT SYSTEM…….YES…..BUT THE AIRCRAFT WAS AIRWORTHY.

SO NOW DOES ANYONE NOW HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THE BIGGEST CONCERN

WHICH AIRLINE FLIGHT SAFETY DEPARTMENTS HAVE?

OR SHOULD HAVE?

A CLUE!

INCORRECT USE OF THE AUTOFLIGHT AND AUTO THRUST SYSTEMS

COUPLED WITH

A LACK OF BASIC FLYING SKILLS.

ALL FOUR AIRCRAFT STALLED……TELL ME WHAT IS YOURUNDERSTANDING OF THE BASICSTALL RECOVERY TECHNIQUE?

YES…………….BACK TO BASICS……….BASICS WILL OFTEN SAVE THE DAY.

• ROLL THE WINGS LEVEL.• REDUCE PITCH ATTITUDE.• APPLY MAXIMUM THRUST.• DO NOT CHANGE THE AIRCRAFT CONFIGURATION.• DO NOT BE SO AGGRESSIVE THAT YOU ENTER A SECONDARY STALL.

ALMOST ANY AIRCRAFT, WHEN YOU DO THE ABOVE, YOU WILL UNSTALL THE AIRCRAFT.

IN THE BOEING 747-400, WHEN WE PRACTICE STALL RECOVERY TECHNIQUE, WE ARE NOT PERMITTED TO LOSE ANY ALTITUDE……EVEN, SORRY, ESPECIALLY IN THE LANDINGCONFIGURATION.

YOU WOULD BE AMAZED HOW MANY HAVE TO REPEAT THIS EXERCISE……

FROM THE PREVIOUS CVR TRANSCRIPTS………TWO CREWS STATED………….

“WHAT IS HAPPENING?”

…………………………………………….THEY ARE DEAD…………………………………………..

“WHAT IS HAPPENING” IS NOT A PHRASE THAT SHOULD BE ACCEPTABLE ON A FLIGHT-DECK…

NO EXCUSE.

SO WHY AM I A SUITABLE PERSON TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT THIS?

NOT FROM THIS PHOTO! BLOOMING CO-PILOTS AND THEIR CAMERAS!

• MY AVIATION CAREER STARTED…..WAY-BACK-WHEN!

• CP63 AT CSE AVIATION KIDLINGTON………….

• AN INTEGRATED COURSE I BELIEVE IT IS NOW CALLED!

• FLYING THE PA28 AND PA31.

• BUT BACK IN 1982!

• ANYONE BORN THEN?

SINCE THEN I HAVE FLOWN JUST 5 AIRCRAFT TYPES:

Bae 748 1/1A/2A.

BOEING 727 100/200.

BOEING 737 300/500/800.

BOEING 747 100/200/400.

DC10-30.

FOR THOSE OF WHO YOU WHO HAVEN’T HEARD OF A Bae748!IT’S NEITHER A BOEING NOR AN AIRBUS! NOR AN AWACS!

I HAVE LOGGED 18,000 HOURS……12,000 HOURS AS CAPTAIN.

THAT IS 750 DAYS,

OR JUST OVER 2 YEARS………….. IN AN ALUMINIUM TUBE!

ROUGHLY 370 ORBITS OF THE EARTH, AROUND THE EQUATOR.

THAT IS A HECK OF A LOT OF FISH, BEEF OR CHICKEN MEALS!

WHAT ELSE????????

I HAVE FLOWN FOR 13 AIRLINES………GOOD AND BAD ONES.

DAN AIR………………………..…………………………………..Bae748, Boeing 727…………………CO-PILOT.VIRGIN ATLANTIC……………………………………………….Boeing 747 100/200/400………...CO-PILOT AND CAPTAIN.ASIANA………………………………………………………………Boeing 747 400………………………..CAPTAIN.KOREAN AIRLINES……………….................................Boeing 747 400………………………..CAPTAIN.THOMSON FLY……………………………………………………Boeing 737 300/500/800…………CAPTAIN.JETAIR FLY……………………………................................Boeing 737 800………………………..CAPTAIN.AVIENT……………………………………………………………….DC 10 30F…………………………………CAPTAIN.JET2……………………………………………………………………Boeing 737 300……..…………………CAPTAIN.VIKING……………………………………………………………….Boeing 737 300/800………………...CAPTAIN.NEOS………………………………………………………………….Boeing 737 800…………………….....CAPTAIN.NASAIR……………………………………………………………….Boeing 737 800………………..........CAPTAIN.PRIVATE/GOVERNMENT IRAQI OPERATOR………….Boeing 747 400………………………..CAPTAIN.SILKWAY WEST……………………………………………………Boeing 747 400………………………..CAPTAIN.

I DON’T THINK I’VE MISSED ANY OUT! AND I WON’T SAY WHICHONES ARE GOOD OR BAD!

MY LAST POSITION WAS AS HEAD OF TRAINING FOR THE BOEING 747-400 AND BOEING 767-300 FLEETS.

I HAVE HAD ONE DEAD STICK LANDING. IN A PA31……..ENGLAND

ONE ENGINE FAILURE ON THE BOEING 747-400………SOUTH KOREA.

NUMEROUS REJECTED TAKE-OFFS, MAINLY IN THE BOEING 737-300……..EUROPE.

EVERY FLIGHT IN THE DC10….SOMETHING WENT WRONG!

I HAVE BEEN MORTARED, LASER TARGETTED AND HAD RPGs LAND ON THE RUNWAY AHEAD……..IRAQ.

OPERATED TO EXTREME LIMITS...MINE AND THE AIRCRAFT…….AFGHANISTAN.

BUT BACK TO TODAY……..I HAVE ALWAYS TRIED TO HAVE A PLAN OF SOME DESCRIPTION.

AS SHOULD YOU!

YOU WOULD EXPECT AFTER 30 YEARS I WOULD HAVE SEEN HUGE IMPROVEMENTS…….

YES AND NO…….

TECHNOLOGY……YES.

PILOTS AND SADLY MANAGEMENT ATTITUDE…………NO!!!!!!!

THIS IS WHAT WE ARE DISCUSSING TODAY…….

SO………..AUTOMATION…….PILOT SKILLS AND SITUATIONAL AWARENESS.

CORRECT USE OF THE ABOVE WILL KEEP YOU SAFE……..

FOR EVERY CONTINGENCY…….HAVE A PLAN……..THE BACKBONE OF TODAYS DISCUSSION.

WHAT ELSE WILL ASSIST IN A SAFE AND EFFICIENT OPERATION?

?

C.R.M.• CREW RESOURCE MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTION.

• HUMAN FACTORS INSTRUCTION.

• ERROR MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTION.

• THEY ARE ALL THE SAME……JUST DIFFERENT ‘AUTHORITIES’ USING DIFFERENT TERMINOLOGY.

A VITAL CONCEPT IN TODAY’S HIGHLY AUTOMATED FLIGHT-DECKS.

LET’S PUT IT ALL TOGETHER.

SYSTEMS KNOWLEDGE. (THIS IS THE IL76! DOUBT ANY OF YOU WILL FLY IT!)

SO OBVIOUSLY KNOW YOUR AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLYUNDERSTAND THEM, AND WHAT TO DO WHEN IT GOES WRONG.

THOROUGHLY UNDERSTAND THE LEVELS OF AUTOMATION AVAILABLE AND HOW TO CORRECTLY USE THEM.

ASIANA DIDN’T, TURKISH AIRLINES DIDN’T, AIR FRANCE DIDN’T………AND PEOPLE DIED.

I HAVE SEEN PILOTS…….SENIOR COMPANY PILOTS PUNCH BUTTONS, NOT UNDERSTANDING THEIR ACTIONS.

I HAVE HEARD THE SAME PILOTS SAY……”WHAT IS HAPPENING?”

RESULTING IN ALTITUDE BUSTS, UNSTABILISED APPROACHES, AND FLIGHT PATH PARAMETER EXCEEDENCES.

AS WELL AS GPWS WARNINGS IN MOUNTAINOUS REGIONS, SUCH AS KABUL IN AFGHANISTAN.

AGAIN ON A MODERN (OR ANY) FLIGHT-DECK THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE.

THE GREATEST EXAMPLE….IN MY OPINION OF UTILISING KNOWLEDGE AND EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE AVAILABLE.

DO YOU KNOW WHO THIS IS?

C.R.M……….YOU WILL NOT BE ON YOUR OWN….USE YOUR CREW, ASK FOR ADVICE.

JUST AS CAPTAIN AL HAYNES DID.

WE HAVE THREE PNEMONICS IN THE AIRLINE WORLD WHICH WE GENERALLY USE……..FIRSTLY ‘GRADE’:

G: GATHER INFORMATION.

R: REVIEW INFORMATION GATHERED.

A: ANALYSE INFORMATION GATHERED.

D: DECIDE ON A COURSE OF ACTION.

E: EVALUATE THE RESULTS OF YOUR ACTIONS.

IF NECESSARY REPEAT TO ACHIEVE A SUCCESFUL OUTCOME.

G.R.A.D.E. WORKS, I HAVE USED IT OFTEN.

THE SECOND PNEMONIC IS ‘DODAR’:

D: DIAGNOSE THE SITUATION.

O: OPTIONS AVAILABLE OR REQUIRED. (HOLD/LAND ETC.)

D: DECIDE ON WHICH OPTION.

A: ACT OR ASSIGN ON YOUR DECISSION.

R: REVIEW YOUR COURSE OF ACTIONS AND PROCESS AGAIN.

BOTH GRADE AND DODAR ARE OPEN LOOP METHODS FOR EVALUATING.IN OTHER WORDS YOU CAN AND SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO BACK AND STARTTHE PROCESS AGAIN…………IF IN DOUBT DO SO.

THE THIRD PNEMONIC RELATES TO INTERACTION BETWEEN THE PILOTS AND CABIN CREW WHICH IS ‘NITS’:

N: NATURE OF EMERGENCY. I: INTENTIONS OF THE PILOTS. (DIVERT/HOLD/EMERGENCY LANDING &c.) T: TIME REMAINING UNTIL LANDING. S: SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS. (e.g. EVACUATION)

FINALLY ENSURE THAT ALL CREW MEMBERS WATCHES ARE SET TO THE CORRECT TIME, TO ENSURE AN ACCURATE TIMELINE FOR ALL TO WORK TO.

THEN HAVE THE CABIN CREW REPEAT THE NITS BRIEF TO ENSURE CLARITY.

SITUATIONAL AWARENESS………

I CANNOT STRESS HIGHLY ENOUGH THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS CONCEPT.

ALWAYS KNOW WHERE YOU ARE AND WHERE YOU CAN GO.

NEVER PUT YOURSELF IN A POSITION WHERE YOU ARE UNSURE OF YOUR OPTIONS.

AGAIN PEOPLE HAVE DIED BECAUSE PILOTS HAVE BEEN UNSURE.

REMEMBER I MENTIONED KABUL IN AFGHANISTAN.EVEN WITH THIS PICTURE AVAILABLE, I HAVE HAD PILOTS PANIC BECAUSE THEY HAD GOT THEIR APPROACH PATH WRONG.

BUT THE E.G.P.W.S. STILL ‘CRIED OUT’………AND IT WAS IGNORED………FRIGHTENING.

SO TO CONCLUDE……..WHAT AM I TRYING TO SAY?

1. KNOW YOUR AIRCRAFT…..IT’S SYSTEMS AND CHECKLISTS.2. UNDERSTAND YOUR AIRCRAFT AND TRUST YOUR CHECKLISTS.3. KNOW WHAT WILL BE THE RESULT OF ANY ACTION YOU TAKE.

4. USE A METHOD SUITABLE FOR YOU TO ASSESS YOUR SITUATION.5. USE YOUR AVAILABLE CREW…….AS A TOOL, AND LISTEN TO THEM.

6. NO DECISION IS EVER FINAL…….UNLESS YOU CRASH……SO REVIEW YOUR ACTIONS.

7. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS KNOW WHERE YOU ARE AND WHERE YOU CAN GO………ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS.

ALL WE HAVE DISCUSSED IS NOT NEW.

YET SERVICABLE AND/OR AIRWORTHY AIRCRAFT STILL CRASH.

AND INNOCENT PEOPLE STILL DIE.

HOW DO WE CHANGE THIS….I DON’T KNOW……I HONESTLY DON’T KNOW.

IN MY LAST TWO JOBS:

ONE AS A BOEING 747-400 FLEET MANAGER,I WOULD NOT RELEASE CAPTAINS FROM TRAINING BECAUSE THEY WERENOT COMPETENT….. I WAS FIRED.

MY NEXT JOB WAS AS HEAD OF TRAINING AND AN ACCOUNTABLE POSTHOLDER….AT A FLIGHT SAFETY MANAGEMENT MEETING, MYSELF AND THEVICE PRESIDENT OF FLIGHT SAFETY HIGHLIGHTED THE UNSAFE PRACTICES OF SOME CREWS……AND THAT NO PILOTS WOULD BE RELEASED FROM RAINING UNLESS THEY WERE COMPETENT.

WE WERE BOTH FIRED.

THANK YOU AND I HOPE YOUR FLIGHT DECK WILL ALWAYS BE AS HAPPY AS THIS ONE!

TIME FOR…….ANY QUESTIONS?

FUTURE JOB PROSPECTS AND WHERE I SEE THE AVIATION MARKET HEADING..…KIDDING…

30 YEARS IN AVIATION HAS GIVEN ME COUNTLESS CONTACTS,

AS WELL AS ALMOST 5,000 FACEBOOK ‘FRIENDS’! ALL OF WHOM TRY TO HELP EACH OTHER.

ON MY FACEBOOK PAGE I HAVE ROOM LEFT FOR ABOUT 200 NEW ‘FRIENDS’ BEFORE IREACH MY 5000 LIMIT!

ON THIS FB PAGE I POST JOB OPPORTUNITIES WHICH I HEAR ABOUT AND ALSO SPONSORSHIPDEALS:

www.facebook.com/alancarter.121772

ALSO MY BLOG: www.pilotisnotafourletterword.blogspot.com HAS A LOT OF INFORMATIONWHICH SHOULD BE OF USE AND INTEREST TO NEWLY QUALIFIED PILOTS.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CONTACT ME PERSONALLY REGARDING ANY ASSISTANCE OR ADVICETHEN MY EMAIL IS: cla747@hotmail.com I WILL REPLY, JUST BE PATIENT!

Thank you all very much, and finally!