On March 1, Flight Safety Foundation released a position paper on pilot training and competency. In the paper, the Foundation says that a pragmatic, data-driven approach to pilot training is essential to the continued improvement of the industry’s safety performance. “The industry needs to embrace, and national civil aviation authorities need to have the flexibility to adopt, competency- or evidence-based training methods that target real-world risk and ensure a progressive and satisfactory performance standard,” the Foundation said.
The paper goes on to offer some background and then a make a series of recommendations. If you haven’t seen it already, the paper is reprinted in this edition of AeroSafety World for your convenience.
In the weeks since we released the paper, a lot of people, including a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, have commented on it — both positively and negatively.
In future issues of ASW, we plan to publish some of the comments and papers we have received in response to our paper. If you would like to have a comment considered for publication, please send me an email at jackman@flightsafety.org. Only emailed comments will be considered for publication.
Before you comment, please keep in mind that while the Foundation is based in the United States, it is an international organization with members in 150 countries. Our position paper is intended to be read in that context.
Also, we understand, expect and respect that some people will disagree with us. Conflict is a natural part of the human condition. Rather than avoiding it, we’d all be better off if we learned how to better address it. Progress often can be made through vigorous discussion by passionate, informed individuals with different viewpoints.
Thanks for your interest, and we looking forward to hearing from you.