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Human errors that can jeopardize air safety continue to occur throughout the industry. For example, a recent survey found that more than 95 per cent of pilots admit to landing their airplane when conditions dictate they shouldn't. The survey – completed by 2,340 pilots worldwide – paints a worrying picture about the current and future state of air safety. Violating the rules has clearly become ingrained in airline culture because crashes are rare. At the same time, new recruits are watching their mentors flout those rules, emboldening them to eventually follow suit.
Addressing this issue means rethinking how air safety is measured. The International Air Transport Association, which represents nearly 300 airlines, agrees. IATA recently noted that "future safety gains will come increasingly from analyzing data from the more than 38 million flights that operate safely every year, rather than just the handful of flights where something goes wrong." Doing so won't be easy however. Shifting focus away from accident statistics means digging up and analyzing personal work-force data. How often are cellphones used in the cockpit? How much of pilot fatigue is because of pilot commuting – the practice of living in one site and flying to another to start work? And how often do pilots abuse alcohol?
These questions are timely. But they are also sensitive. No organization wants its dirty laundry aired publicly, let alone major airlines worth billions. Yet this approach is what is needed to raise the air-safety bar. And that's what the travelling public should demand.
Addressing this issue means rethinking how air safety is measured. The International Air Transport Association, which represents nearly 300 airlines, agrees. IATA recently noted that "future safety gains will come increasingly from analyzing data from the more than 38 million flights that operate safely every year, rather than just the handful of flights where something goes wrong." Doing so won't be easy however. Shifting focus away from accident statistics means digging up and analyzing personal work-force data. How often are cellphones used in the cockpit? How much of pilot fatigue is because of pilot commuting – the practice of living in one site and flying to another to start work? And how often do pilots abuse alcohol?
These questions are timely. But they are also sensitive. No organization wants its dirty laundry aired publicly, let alone major airlines worth billions. Yet this approach is what is needed to raise the air-safety bar. And that's what the travelling public should demand.
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