Reducing Cockpit Distractions
Flying safely is the first concern of any pilot, and it is definitely our objective at Summit Aviation to help pilots and aviation professionals be aware of the vast amount of information that they need to be safe and legal.
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The recent incident when two Northwest Airlines pilots flew for 91 minutes without talking to the ground on October 21 highlights a problem that all pilots, including corporate, charter, private and recreational pilots should consider. Airplanes are getting more automated, and it’s easy to let one’s mind or conversation drift off to unrelated subjects.
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Although automation in the cockpit and technological distractions like internet availability for scheduling tasks may cause new distractions, the danger of flying while distracted is not new.
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Incidents of Cockpit Distractions
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December 29, 1972 Near Everglades National Park, Florida, in a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar1 – The crew was preoccupied with a landing gear problem and was trying to replace the landing gear light while on autopilot and in a holding pattern. As the captain got up to help, he inadvertently pushed on the yoke releasing the autopilot. With no ground reference and under nighttime conditions, the aircraft gradually descended until it crashed into Everglades, 18.7 miles west-northwest of Miami . The failure of the crew to monitor the flight instruments during the final 4 minutes of flight, and to detect a descent soon enough to prevent impact with the ground. After spare parts from the L-1011 were used on other planes, apparitions of the captain, Robert Loft and flight engineer, Don Repo began to be reported by Eastern employees. The book “The Ghost of Flight 401″and movies “The Ghost of Flight 401″ and “Crash” are based on this accident. Three passengers and one crew member died in weeks following the accident making the total 103.
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On Dec. 28, 1978, Portland, Oregon, a McDonnell Douglas DC-8-61, while on a flight from Denver to Portland, the aircraft ran out of fuel while the crew was distracted with a landing gear problem. Failure of the captain to monitor properly the aircraft’s fuel state and to properly respond to the low fuel state as indicated by other crew members. Contributing to the accident was the failure of the other two flight crew members either to fully comprehend the criticality of the fuel state or to successfully communicate their concern to the captain.
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February 06, 1992 Evansville, Indiana The U.S. Air Force (acting as the Kentucky National Guard) crew of a Lockheed C-130B were doing touch-and-goes. While taking off, the aircraft struck a motel and then crashed into JoJo’s restaurant and the Drury’s Inn Motel, exploding into flames. Eleven persons on the ground were killed. The crash was caused by failure of the pilots to maintain sufficient air speed during a simulated engine failure due to distractions with ATC instructions and routine check list duties resulting in a stall.
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June 09, 1995 a de Havilland Canada DHC-8-102 Near Palmerston North, New Zealand – approached Runway 25, the right main landing gear did not extend. While the captain continued the descent the co-pilot carried out the landing gear alternate extension checklist. The plane descended below the minimum safe step-down altitudes for the approach and struck the top of a ridge line. The captain did not ensure the aircraft intercepted and maintained the approach profile during the non-precision instrument approach. The captain’s unwise decision to get the landing gear lowered without discontinuing the instrument approach. The captain’s distraction from the primary task of flying the aircraft safely during the first officer’s attempt to correct a landing gear malfunction.
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Aug. 27, 2006, Lexington, Kentucky, a Canadair CRJ-200ER commuter was the third of three airplanes to take off that morning. The previous two planes took off from Runway 22 without any problems. The flightcrew was cleard to taxi to Runway 22 and subsequently cleared for takeoff. However, flight 5191 used Runway 26, which is about half the length of Runway 22. The plane accelerated to 137 knots befoe it ran off the end of the runway, ran through an airport perimeter fence and impacted trees on an adjacent horse farm and burst into flames. The takeoff sequence took about 36 seconds. The aircraft was still on the ground as the plane ran off the runway.The plane came to rest about 1,800 feet past the runway. It was dark with light rain at the time of the accident. The copilot was at the controls but it was the captain who taxied the plane into position for take off. The copilot was the lone survivor. The flight crew’s failure to use available cues and aids to identify the airplane’s location on the airport surface during taxi and their failure to cross check and verify that the airplane was on the correct runway before takeoff. Contributing to this accident were the flight crew’s nonpertinent conversation during taxi, which resulted in loss of positional awareness and the Federal Aviation Administration’s failure to require that all runway crossings be authorized only by specific air traffic control clearances.
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What’s next?
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It will be interesting to see how the latest story plays out, and if any regulations are changed as a result of it. Each of these incidents results in a review by the associated authorities, and many incidents result in changes to the FARs, making it more important than ever to stay current, stay focused, and stay safe.
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Our Digital Reference Library can help you keep up with the changes in regulations as they occur. Having a biweekly subscription is the best way to be sure you have the latest - we check the Federal Register daily and incorporate the changes into their resident documents for you, as well as giving you a “what’s new” section with each issue.
Happy flying, and be safe!
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