Introduction
Almost all of the commercial airplane accidents that have been reported in the past are caused by human error which accounts for approximately 70% of the accidents (Griffin et al., 2015). Hence, it is important to appreciate the fact that human error is recently becoming a principal concern not only to flight operations but in the maintenance practices as well as air traffic control. The above concern has made the major airlines to employ human factor professionals who work closely with the engineers and pilots to embrace innovation on human performance as well as the airplanes to help enhance the safety and efficiency of the same (Maurino & Salas, 2010). The case in place that will be used for the above study is the fatal accident of 1972 that claimed 100 lives of the Eastern Airline Flight 401. According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the accident was not actually due to any serious mechanical problem but due to the human errors. Apparently, although the plane had a crew of four people, none was able to notice the airplane's flight path and that there was no proper division of duties to check for any anomalies. The purpose of the above study, therefore, is to determine the different causes of airplane accidents with the primary focus on human factors so as to come up with practical strategies on how the behavior can be managed to enhance passenger safety as well as well operational efficiency of the commercial planes.
Main Body
As aforestated, the concept of "human factors" has gained popularity in the recent past in the aviation industry with the main focus on human error as the major contributor to most of the commercial plane accidents other than mechanical failure. Human factors as defined by the crew resource management (CRM) refers to the notion of collecting information on capabilities of people, their limitations among other important aspects and applying the same to the different airplane operations so as to enhance safety. The concept is meant to understand how people can be integrated with technology in the most proficient and safe way. The above objectives can thus be realized through the regular training of the crew, policy use, and designs among other issues that are employed to ensure that people can perform better.
Innovation in aviation is meant to enhance more efficiency in the industry and ensure that safety is upheld. For the above task to be achieved, the people must be knowledgeable, flexible in addressing different kinds of challenges, dedicated to meeting their respective responsibilities and make a rational judgment while fulfilling their duties. The accident experienced by the flight 401 is enough evidence to show the impact of human error on safety an indication for a need to invest in proper training, acquiring of more advanced aviation equipment and systems that will significantly impact on the organization success. With the rapid change in technology, there is a need to enhance human interaction with technology to prevent such incidents in future (Griffin et al., 2015).
Enhancing human performance can significantly reduce the number of accidents that are experienced in commercial aviation an objective that can be achieved through effective planning of the human-airplane interface. The above situation has forced most airlines corporate to evaluate more on human performance and device new ways on how to improve the efficiency of the operations (Garland et al., 2010). The human factor specialists, therefore, have to work with the cabin crew, pilots, and engineers among other stakeholders as one way through which they can enhance safety precautions.
The NTSB gave a simple report on flight 401 that the primary cause of the accident was autopilot disconnection that was done by mistake and remained unnoticed throughout the flight. Apparently, the focus of the team was on the safe landing of the aircraft and failed to pay attention to the sound that was being produced alerting them about the problem. From the report, it was evident that the crew on board failed in working together to harmonize their efforts in meeting safety condition for the safe landing of the plane which resulted in a crash that claimed 100 lives instead. From the above finding, it is important therefore to discuss the following areas which if observed will significantly reduce human error hence lower cases of the commercial plane crash across the globe.
Flight deck design
Design improvement is one of the strategies that contribute to safe air travel thus reducing cases of accidents that are experienced while at the same time experiencing more efficiency. Some of the main contributions that have been done include improving the engines of the planes as well as the structure and respective systems that are employed. Scholars have asserted that design has in the past played a significant contribution to reducing human error in the aviation industry. Hence, the employed designs have to incorporate consumer input to suggest on the appropriate design that should be employed. As revealed by Flight 401, crew errors if not detected in time will lead to crashing an aspect that will result in significant damage or loss of life. Incorporation of the automation systems that is easy to use helps indicate both visual and motion cues that will make the crew aware of the changes that are taking place, the status of the plane and flight path made irrespective of the situation of the aircraft (Brennan et al., 2016).
Another aspect that should be enhanced as noted from the flight 401 accident is improving crew communication capacity by making it more efficient. Different approaches are employed for the above task which includes the use of audio, tactile and visual strategies. The above approaches should thus be applied more efficiently during each flight so that the crew members should harmonize their efforts to help one another during the emergency time to guarantee passenger safety.
Maintenance and in-service support
Upholding is one of the human factor aspects that are employed in the industry to enhance operational efficiency and wellbeing of the viable air crafts. The airline needs to appoint a chief mechanic who has the responsibility for ensuring that the planes are free of any mechanical breakdowns whatsoever. Furthermore, he significantly contributes to the success of the different operations that are carried out by the airline by ensuring the varied human factors are effectively addressed (Dumitru & Boşcoianu, 2015). It is important to appreciate the fact that employment of the computer based maintainability is an important input to the airline industry as mechanics have access to the maintenance of a plane irrespective of the difficult circumstance that they may be facing like for the case of flight 401.
As mentioned earlier, human beings are prone to errors, and this has negatively impacted on the aviation industry resulting in fatal accidents. The above situation can happen under two circumstances as categorized by the human factor analysis which can either be due to an error or violations. While error indicates the random acts that may lead to accidents like for the case of Flight 401, a violation, on the other hand, refer to the negligence of the rules and regulations concerning the safety of flight. The crew on Flight 401 experienced a skill-based error as they were not able to notice the sound that was produced to alert them of the danger and the above case is as a result of lack of memory or attention. As revealed by the above case, of flight 401, the accident occurred due to lack of attention as there were not able to troubleshoot the anomalies in time. Another type of unsafe acts is the decision errors which only indicate the type of mistakes that are experienced due to wrong choices which are intended or due to lack of adequate knowledge. These types of errors are often encountered once the pilots fail to follow the set procedures as expected as for the above case or a situation is misdiagnosed.
The airline companies have some policies that are put in place to guarantee safe flight but are often violated by the aircrew leading to accidents. Violations are of different forms and can be either routine or exceptional and are not in any way accepted by the managing authority. As mentioned earlier, most of the airline accidents are caused by the unsafe acts which can be further classified as either substandard conditions or practices carried out by the operators.
Substandard conditions
One of the conditions that have been observed to result in accident incidents is the adverse mental status that significantly influences the performance of an individual. The above situation can be identified by observing individuals for characteristics like fatigue, lack of awareness, distraction among other major issues. However, other incidents that can result in such state is being overconfidence, or lack of proper motivation in the task that leads to troubled mind (Brennan et al., 2016). Hence, it is important to appreciate the fact that if one is mentally tired for one reason or another, chances for him to cause an error is very high an aspect that often leads to fatal accidents. Some of the facets like overconfidence and arrogance among the aircrew lead to violations that will result in an increase in human error incidents.
Substandard practices
The above case can be further classified into two as either crew resource mismanagement (CRM) or individual readiness. CRM has been a concept that has been employed for decades in the aviation industry and the mismanagement, in this case, indicates the poor coordination of the crew team as for the case of flight 401. It is, therefore, important to appreciate that lack of adequate communication in the past has resulted in poor coordination resulting in misunderstanding and wrong decision making that often leads to accidents (Daramola, 2014).. It is, therefore, important that pilots should ensure that the aircrew is well coordinated to experience rational judgment as to when to fly or not so as to overcome plane crash as for the case of the 1972 accident.
Unsafe supervisions
The aircrew should be properly supervised indicating that they are well trained, motivated and well led to understand their respective roles in flights. However, lack of adequate supervision has in the past been found to result in compromised skills among the aircrew members hence experience awkward moments when faced with adverse situations. This is as a result of poor coordination that often results in high risks of causing fatal errors that are likely lead to an accident. Therefore, to overcome such incidents in the aviation industry, it is important to appreciate the fact that professional oversight is a valuable input that will lead to the success of the business (Daramola, 2014).
A major concern in the Flight 401 crash is that there was inappropriate operation plan as the crew team was not well organized in accomplishing their tasks and failed to harmonize their efforts towards a safe landing. Moreover, the crew on board was aware of the problem that was being experienced by the plane but failed to correct the situation an aspect that can be explained by deficiencies among people or lack of adequate facilities or training.
Organizational factors
Business with poor organizational structures is prone to errors which often go unnoticed by the supervision team that may contribute to brooding of the unsafe behavior that may significantly affect the airline business. Resource use in the organization is based on different business objectives which if not properly allocated, may lead to a serious complication that will impair the company operations. In aviation organization with financial difficulties, it is always a common sense that cut down on resource use, safety and regular training are always omitted an aspect that may impair efficient working of the aircrew leading to a plane crash. Such incidents may be evidenced by acts like the use of obsolete equipment, having less-trained pilots that are allowed to fly mismanaged flights that are likely to have mechanical technicalities. Another challenge that may affect efficient operation of an aviation business is the nature of organizational climate that is employed (Konieczny et al., 2014). This includes the manner in which communication in an organization is structured, embraced policies and culture that dictate the different operations of the airline hence having a significant impact on safety conditions of the flights.
Another facet that is experienced in organizational management is the process that is often employed in the everyday activities of the business, for example, the use of standard procedures in running an organizational business. These include aspect lie the pressure on time management, working scheduling or other operational guidelines that significantly influence safety precautions. However, most organizations in the aviation industry lack a special panel to assess proper procedures that should be employed in evaluating the aircrew errors or possibly human factors that may influence safety (Gong et al., 2014).
Conclusion
It is essential to conclude by stating that evaluation and analysis of the human factor is one of the best approaches that should be employed to determine the different human causes of airline accidents as evidenced by the above study. The above paper indicates the different situation under which human error is experienced, conditions and the different challenges that a corporate may experience, which may influence safety. The human factor analysis as applied in the case of flight 401 accident is a the best tool that can be used to understand effectively the different human errors that are often experienced in the aviation industry that leads to accidents which can be prevented in the future. In a nutshell, the use of the human factor analysis technique has proved to be a useful tool in the aviation industry which enhance on safety programs. Furthermore, the primary rationale for the above practice is to lower the number of cases of aviation accidents and evolve better investigation techniques that will help in better management of the business in future.
References
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