Learning from Aviation

The OR is a high-risk work environment with several analogies to the cockpit of aircraft. Both environments involve multidisciplinary teams that must interact with each other and with complex technology in a stressful high-stakes environment. In both systems, error can be fatal. Over the past few decades, the aviation industry has developed effective strategies to prevent and mitigate aviation accidents. Such strategies include pre-flight checklists that ensure critical items are not forgotten prior to take-off; Line Operations Safety Audits (LOSA), a program that involves observation in the cockpit during routine flights to record threats and errors; Crew Resource Management (CRM), a curriculum to improve pilot performance during crisis scenarios; and the black-box, a flight data and cockpit voice recorder installed in aircraft for accident analysis.

Prior to implementation of these strategies, the majority of airline accidents were attributed to pilot error, communication-related issues, and a negative culture in the cockpit143. Reports from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration have revealed that 70% of aviation accidents involve human error. The role of human factors in flight safety was identified in the 1970s through the analysis of data from black-box cockpit voice recorders and flight data recorders. These black-box recorders have helped the aviation industry identify key factors that contribute to accidents, which has led to the development of effective training curricula such as Crew Resource Management. Mandated implementation of the black-box recording device in commercial aircraft has significantly improved flight safety over the past several decades.