Risk factors associated with flying in adverse weather: From the passengers' point of view

Risk factors on the demand side of aviation safety are rarely addressed as the focus of research is most often placed on the supply side of aviation service. Even though airlines have the prerogative to cancel flights in the face of adverse weather, stranded passengers have to be reckoned with in the event of cancellation. Passengers' awareness of the risks associated with flying in adverse weather may help mitigate the confrontation as well as induce passengers to take the lead in adopting preventive measures. The aim of this article is to study the attitudes air travelers say they have towards flying in adverse weather, as well as risk factors regarding cancellation of trips in adverse weather. A conceptual framework is presented which outlines the links between risk factors and preventive measures. Data generated from a quantitative survey of 1145 air travelers, conducted in July 2015 at Taiwan's Kaohsiung International Airport, is used to examine this framework using correlation analysis and one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA). The factors of trust, risk perception and domestic destination are found to be positively related to passengers' stated attitude toward taking preventive measures. Income, purpose of the trip and direct experience generate ambiguous results. The outcome also suggests the following paradox: while pilots make the final decision regarding aviation safety in adverse weather, they appear to enjoy the lowest level of passenger trust.     

Organizational trust and safety operation behavior in airline pilots: The mediating effects of organizational identification and organizational commitment

As an important issue for the sustainable development of a country, aviation security is important for either the development of aviation enterprises or the stability and orderliness of the whole society. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to explore the roles of organizational trust, organizational identification, and organizational commitment in safety operation behavior (SOB) for one hundred forty-three airline pilots. Correlation analysis indicated that organizational trust, organizational identification, organizational commitment, and SOB were significantly correlated with each other. Bootstrap analysis showed that airline pilots' organizational identification and organizational commitment mediated the relationship between their organizational trust and SOB in aviation. Implications for research and instructions for how to improve airline pilots’ SOB in aviation are discussed.     

Gender on the flightdeck: Experiences of women commercial airline pilots in the UK

The reasons for, and the implications arising from, the underrepresentation of women on the flightdeck of commercial aircraft continues to challenge national Governments, the aviation industry, and the academic community. Although some airlines have made concerted efforts to improve the gender balance of their flightcrew, womens' participation in the profession remains low. Of the 130,000 airline pilots worldwide only 4000 (3%) are women and only 450 hold the command of Captain. The dominant historical discourse of airline pilots as assertive masculine figures may act to dissuade women from pursuing a career on the flightdeck and women pilots are subjected to sexist remarks and behaviour from colleagues and passengers. Given commercial aviation's increasing growth worldwide and the concurrent increase in demand for highly skilled labour, the inability to recruit and retain women pilots represents a significant problem for both the sector and the wider economy as it will constrain growth, hinder aviation's expansion by failing to capitalise on women's skill sets, and delay the achievement of gender equality. Understanding the experiences of flightcrew is therefore vital in addressing this important research problem. Through the use of in-depth interviews with men and women flightcrew in the UK, the research identifies a number of obstacles to greater female participation and recommends that airlines not only focus on gender differences in learning, leadership and communication but that they also take steps to more effectively manage diversity in their workforce and actively promote positive representations of women flightcrew both within and beyond their organisation.     

Gender in the cockpit: Challenges faced by female airline pilots

Despite the increasing number of female pilots in recent years, the aviation industry is still considered a male-dominated one. Being underrepresented in an occupation and working in an industry with masculine discourses create several challenges for female pilots. This study aims to identify gender-related career challenges experienced by female pilots based in Turkey. The findings of the study reveal that female commercial airline pilots have been experiencing gender prejudice and discrimination in the workplace. These prejudices and discriminations place considerable psychological burden on them which can significantly affect their behaviour and performance. Considering the findings of the study, several recommendations are given to the airline companies and the society in supporting female pilots’ career advancement.     

The influence of mindfulness on mental state with regard to safety among civil pilots

Civil pilots' mental state has an important impact on their safety operation behaviors. The goal of this paper is to explore the relationships between mindfulness and anxiety in Chinese airline pilots. 319 commercial civil pilots from China Southern Airlines Ltd. were investigated using three separate scales, which measured mindfulness, anxiety, and burnout. The results show that mindfulness has a negative effect on pilots' anxiety. Burnout partially mediates the relationships between mindfulness and anxiety. Thus, mindfulness primarily influences pilots’ anxiety indirectly, by affecting burnout. The findings with regard to mindfulness have important implications in terms of pilot selection and emotional intervention, which, if appropriately addressed, can contribute to improving aviation safety.     

Handling the pseudo pilot assignment problem in air traffic control training by using NASA TLX

Simulator courses play an important role in a department training air traffic controllers (ATCOs). One of the most important elements of these courses is a pseudo-pilot (PP) who has active tasks during simulator training. At Eskisehir Technical University (ESTU) PP assignments are made manually to meet the demand of related courses by considering the availability of PP. Even where it is attempted to assign each PP equally in terms of period, personal workloads differ due to the different psychological (mental) and physiological requirements of the simulator tasks. In this study, the PP assignment problem is investigated using mixed-integer programming (MIP). For this purpose, firstly, an equal period assignment to pilots was attempted with a mathematical model, called the Equality of Periods Model (EPM). Then, simulator tasks were weighted using the NASA Task Load Index (NASA TLX), and an Equality of Workload Model (EWLM) was created based on these weights. Finally, these models were combined to make fair assignments with the Fair Model (FM). The results indicate that the proposed models significantly reduce the differences of workload and working period compared to manual assignment (MA).     

An investigation of fatigue issues on different flight operations

The influence of various kinds of flight operations on pilot fatigue remains a chronic problem which has a bearing on flight safety. In this study we sampled flight crews from six airlines in Taiwan, asking them to report on their perceptions of both physical and mental fatigue, before and after flight duty. The data were then analyzed with paired t-test and ANOVA. Our research results confirm findings obtained in other studies, namely, that perceived fatigue levels increase after flight duty, with that of oceanic crews being greater than that of crews serving either regional or short-haul operations. A majority of the pilots surveyed reported feeling fatigued or even nodding-off during long-distance flights, and consequently were in favor of a program of scheduled cockpit napping. While these findings are preliminary, they offer valuable information to aviation regulators and airlines regarding the assigning of consecutively scheduled flights to the same aircrews.     

Risk assessment modeling in aviation safety management

Safety risk management is important in aviation. This paper develops a quantitative model for assessing aviation safety risk factors as a means of increasing the effectiveness of safety risk management system by integrating the fuzzy linguistic scale method, failure mode, effects and criticality analysis principle, and as low as reasonably practicable approach. The model is developed by evaluating all related estimation factors based on their importance, how hazardous they are, their detectability, probability, criticality, and frequency. An empirical study demonstrates the modeling process.     

A longitudinal study on the alteration of consumer perceptions and the use of pilot medication

In 2010, the United States’ Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved the use of four antidepressant medications that could be prescribed to pilots on active flight duty, provided the pilot adhered to detailed policies and protocols. These medications were praised by many in the aviation community who were concerned with pilots underreporting mental health issues or engaging in self-medication. The purpose of this study was to complete a follow-up to a study, initially conducted prior to a 2015 Germanwings accident where a European commercial airliner crashed in an alleged case of pilot suicide. In the previous study, consumers were asked their willingness to fly when their pilot was taking various medications (fluoxetine, loratadine, ibuprofen or clonidine); and the findings suggest that the fluoxetine condition produces the lowest willingness to fly scores. The current study was replicated longitudinally in the weeks following the Germanwings accident. The findings of the current study reveal a significant drop in willingness to fly scores for the fluoxetine condition immediately after the accident; however, there is no significant change to the other medications. After 12-weeks, the fluoxetine condition returns to its pre-accident levels.     

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on current tertiary aviation education and future careers: Students’ perspective

This study investigates Australian undergraduate tertiary aviation students' perceptions of the aviation industry and skills required to succeed following the COVID-19 pandemic. By developing an understanding of the skills students perceive to be necessary for their careers following the COVID-19 pandemic, comparisons can be drawn with industry perspectives to determine whether these perspectives align and, more importantly, support students’ successful development of skills as sought by the industry. An online survey of current undergraduate tertiary aviation students at Australian universities was conducted to determine the perceived impediments, additional skills required, post-graduation plans and how university courses should evolve post-COVID-19. The results show that students are cognisant of the current oversupply of aviation professionals due to the downturn in the industry and are seeking further support with the development of non-technical skills to better prepare themselves to be competitive following graduation. These findings have implications for both undergraduate aviation students and universities offering an undergraduate aviation program. By considering these findings universities can adapt their programs to better prepare students and support the development of skilled aviation professionals, equipped to deal with challenges of the post-COVID-19 aviation industry.     

A hybrid approach based on the fuzzy AHP and HFACS framework for identifying and analyzing gross navigation errors during transatlantic flights

Despite the considerable efforts to alleviate problems of North Atlantic (NAT) air traffic and implementation of novel surveillance systems, oceanic errors still remain stubbornly high. The purpose of this study is to identify and examine the factors that contribute to navigation errors in the NAT Region by integrating a Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) into the Human Factors Analysis and Classifying System (HFACS) framework for the first time to the best of our knowledge. According to the priority weights, the most important factors contributing to oceanic errors are lack of training provided by airlines, use of inappropriate routes for oceanic crossing by dispatchers, and failure to take preventive measures against oceanic errors. To mitigate the possibility of the aforementioned errors, pilots as individuals must increase their knowledge on cockpit procedures and airlines as organizations have to pay particular attention to training programs to implement appropriate preventive actions.     

The factors influencing entry level airline pilot retention: An empirical study of Ryanair

Pilot retention has been a significant concern for airlines that find it difficult to recruit and maintain pilots who are classified as high skilled employees. The aim of this research is to determine the factors that influence pilot retention and investigate if these factors differ based on gender, age and level of commercial flying experience of pilots. A mixed methods approach was used. Quantitative information was collected via an online survey sent to 394 Ryanair pilots. Nine in-depth expert interviews were conducted. The pilots ranked, in order of importance, a number of retention-influencing factors spanning seven areas, identified with the help of interviewees and secondary research. The results of the survey indicate that the most important retention influencing factors are being based at home, working a fixed roster pattern for a financially stable airline, being paid a competitive salary and having job security. This research provides qualitative evidence that airlines can use to develop or update their financial and non-financial benefits packages and where necessary, amend work practices and maximise pilot motivation to stay.     

Optimal assignment of aircrew trainees to simulator and classroom training sessions subject to seniority and preference restrictions

We develop an integer programming model and an exact solution methodology for assigning aircrew members to training sessions which they need to attend in order to fulfill the requirements for renewal of their flight capability. The aim is to find the optimal assignment that minimizes the number of unassigned trainees, while also satisfying a variety of seniority, preference, capacity and language compatibility restrictions. The proposed methodology partitions the aircrew members into distinct groups based on their seniority, making the optimal assignment decisions pertaining to each of these groups sequentially. We present extensive computational results demonstrating that the proposed methodology enables the solution of realistic size problems in moderate computational times.     

Implications for CARICOM member states in the search for a ‘liberally controlled’ air transport market: The case of regional tourism to Barbados

This study presents an analysis of the state of aviation liberalisation in CARICOM (Caribbean Community) and its implications for regional tourism to Barbados as a member state in CARICOM. The evidence shows that improvements to the regulatory aviation environment in CARICOM would aid improvements in intra-regional tourism. Given the benefits that have been obtained globally, previous studies have been deductive and analysed the benefits of a less restrictive aviation environment in the region. However, the inductive approach of this study reveals that before there can be a successful attempt at any such liberalism in CARICOM, there are pre-existing constraining factors which must be addressed since they will hinder the effectiveness of any such policy. The study therefore proposes that the effectiveness of the existing regional multilateral agreement is hindered by political interference, not only in the overall context of aviation bureaucracy, but also in the business operations of the regional carriers.     

铁路培训需求调查与分析

培训是一项系统工程，培训需求调查与分析是现代培训活动的首要环节，它既是确定培训目标、开发培训项目的前提，也是进行培训评估的基础。结合对铁路系统培训需求调查与分析的步骤与方法的阐述，提出进一步提高铁路系统培训需求调查分析工作的建议。     

Effects of work shifts on fatigue levels of air traffic controllers

Fatigue is one of the most important issues since it is considered to be a potential risk factor for human error. Most research related to human fatigue in the aviation industry targets pilots, yet air traffic controllers also experience elevated levels of fatigue that affects aviation safety. Despite this, fatigue is often ignored in literature, as it is a mental and physical status that is difficult to measure. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) announced the concept of the Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS) in Annex 6 in 2011, which provides suggestions to reduce aircrew fatigue. In 2016, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization (CANSO), ICAO, and the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers' Associations (IFATCA) published the Fatigue Management Guide for Air Traffic Service Providers and for the first time proposed recommendations for air traffic controllers (ATCs) to address this issue. Based on the management guide, this research used the Samn-Perelli fatigue scale to measure air traffic controllers' fatigue levels in an international aerodrome control tower in Taiwan. The results indicated that there were significant differences between day/night shifts, time periods (shift start time, before break time, after break time, and shift end time), and various work schedules. The results also revealed the importance of the timing of the breaks and time on task when arranging work schedules. This research contributes to aviation safety by investigating ATCs' fatigue levels in current work shifts, thereby helping related units to improve and adjust shift schedules in order to reduce the risks related to fatigue.     

Limits to air travel growth: The case of infrequent flyers

Most air travel forecasts predict a long-term rise in demand, with limited consideration of any limits to growth. However for any given population there will be those who have not flown recently (‘infrequent flyers’), as well as non-flyers, and little is known about these and whether they are likely to fly in the future. The aim of this paper is to analyse the characteristics of these groups and the reasons for their travel habits, using the UK as a case study. The findings show that infrequent flyers make up a heterogeneous consumer group whose non-flying is influenced more by budget constraints and personal circumstances than specific aviation factors. Comparisons with Belgian, German and Dutch infrequent flyers indicate some similarities, although there are differences in the relative importance of the reasons for not flying. The findings have implications for the aviation industry and regulators, and policy areas related to consumers and climate change.     

Airport airside safety index

Rapidly growing air traffic and increasingly unstable climatic conditions have brought great pressure to bear on airport and airline Safety Management Systems (SMSs). Each item of airport infrastructure is designed to certain environmental specifications, which defines the pilot's perception of the risk of air accidents or incidents. This paper presents a fuzzy-logic methodology for measuring aviation accident risks at airports, based on the perceptions of a sample of pilots operating at the airport in question. The methodology is applied to two airports in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The results show the pilots' perceptions related to the most likely types of accident and the risks that should be prioritised in airport and airline SMSs.     

Indian and American consumer perceptions of cockpit configuration policy

Prior studies have examined the passenger's trust in a human operated system versus an autonomous autopilot operated system. The results indicated that passengers had a more negative attitude toward the autopilot systems. The current study expands on this by examining perceptions of different cockpit configurations, and exploring cultural differences between Indian and American individuals. Participants from both India and the United States were asked to imagine a) that they were on a commercial flight, b) that they were sending a package on a cargo flight, or c) that they were on a corporate flight. In addition they were told that the aircraft was piloted by: a) two pilots in the cockpit, b) one pilot in the cockpit and one pilot located in a ground facility using remote controls, or c) two pilots in a ground facility using the remote controls. The results demonstrated that participants were strongly against having two pilots on the ground controlling the aircraft with remote controls, although most accepted this if the pilots were remote controlling cargo flights. In addition, American participants had more extreme views than the Indian participants, except with the cargo situation.     

Martin Kunz Memorial Lecture. Tourism benefits and aviation policy

Many tourists now travel by air, and aviation liberalisation has greatly contributed to the boom in international tourism. The relevance of tourism economic benefits in aviation policy decisions is becoming established, though there has been little by of analysis of these, of how they can be measured. Here, the nature of tourism's economic benefits is discussed, and ways of measuring them are suggested. These rely on the use of computable general equilibrium models of economies. The measures of tourism benefits obtained from these are positive, though they smaller than more ad-hoc measures which are sometimes used, such as total tourism expenditure. The role of tourism benefits in aviation policy making is considered in several case studies. These indicate that while the tourism benefits to a country from aviation liberalisation are not likely to be as large as benefits to home country travellers or the costs to home country airlines, they are sufficiently large to tilt the balance of benefits and costs of liberalisation in many cases.