PROFESSIONALISM, BETTER TRAINING ARE KEYS TO IMPROVING GA SAFETY, SAYS NTSB CHAIR
Oct 23, 2007 :: PROFESSIONALISM, BETTER TRAINING ARE KEYS TO IMPROVING GA SAFETY, SAYS NTSB CHAIR – Corporateaviation is continuing to maintain a level of safety that rivals the level of scheduled airlines, National
Transportation Safety Board Chairman Mark Rosenker said. But he added that several recent accidents have
underscored the importance of operators emphasizing professionalism, training and fatigue countermeasures.
“We have had an extraordinary safety record in corporate aviation the past few years,” Rosenker said during
a speech he gave at the 2007 Bombardier Safety Standdown Oct. 23. “But, my colleagues on the Board and
I are disturbed that [several accidents] have all involved a less-than-professional approach to airmanship.”
Some flight departments operate on a shoestring budget with inadequate experience and training “or
shoddy maintenance practices,” Rosenker said. “These types of operations, unfortunately, are typically the ones
that garner the NTSB’s attention. They also give [aviation] a black eye in the white hot media spotlight. There
is always room for improvement.” Rosenker warned that pilots should not confuse getting paid to fly with being
a professional pilot. “Professionalism has absolutely nothing to do with the size of a paycheck or the size of your
airplane,” he said. “Professionalism is a mindset that includes hallmarks such as precise checklist usage, precise
callouts, precise compliance with SOPs and regulations, including sterile cockpit compliance. Quite simply,
professionalism means doing the right things, even when no one is watching.”
Rosenker also noted that several recent business aircraft accidents should remind the industry that all
pilots need proper training. “Training deficiencies in corporate flight departments can lead to tragic circumstances.
You can design, build, buy and fly the most advanced wiz-bang, go-fast, airplanes, but if you’re not adequately
trained on using the hardware, all those advancements mean little.
“Inadequate preflight preparation can lead to an unhappy ending,” added Rosenker, “and our [NTSB] files
are too full with these types of accidents. If some of you are cutting corners on your preflight preparation out of
complacency, or to please your passengers, then you are playing with fire.”
Rosenker stressed the importance of instituting fatigue countermeasures to reduce the number of corporate
aircraft accidents, and he pledged, “Our objective is to push for working-hour limits for flight crews and aviation
mechanics, based on fatigue research, circadian rhythms, and sleep and rest requirements. How well maintenance
is handled in corporate flight departments is equally as important as the quality of the pilots,” he added.
