Communication skills: a mandatory competence for ground and airplane crew to reduce tension in extreme situations

Vieira, Ana Maria; Santos, Isabel Cristina dos

doi:10.5028/jatm.2010.02038110

Abstract:

Communication skills have been considered a strategic asset for any kind of organization. However, technical-oriented enterprises usually emphasize the virtues of a cluster of technical competences and technological resources availability. So, this paper aimed to discuss communication skills development beyond technical communication in a high technology and technical-based operation, such as ground and flight operations. To do so, this article describes some tragic-ending cases in commercial aviation in which the poor quality of interpersonal communication was identified as the one of the most influential causes of the aircraft, or at least that was seen as a compelling force for creating the perfect backdrop for a disaster involving civilian aircrafts. Methodological procedures were basically addressed to a qualitative approach, supported by a documental research considering some of the most documented cases of aircraft accidents reported by the Aviation System Safety Report, issued by Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), USA, as well as reports of accidents provided by The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), USA, and by the Center for Aircraft Research and Prevention (Cenipa), Brasil.

Keywords:
Airplane operations; Communication skills; Flight safety; Managing risks

Full text is available only in PDF.

REFERENCES

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» http://www.alirlinesafety.com/editorials/CockpitCabinPsicology.htm
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Brooks, W.D., Heath, R.W., 1993, "Speech communication", Dubuque: W. C. Brown.
CENIPA, 2008, "Relatório Final A-022/CENIPA/2008", Brasília: Cenipa.
Cushing, S., 1995, "Fatal Words: communication clashes and aircraft crashes", Chicago: Chicago University Press.
Del Prette, A., Del Prette, Z.A.P., 2004, "Psicologia das relações interpessoais: vivências para o trabalho em grupo", 3rd ed., Petrópolis: Vozes.
Dickson D., Hargie O., 2004, "Skilled interpersonal communication: research, theory, and practice", London: Routledge, pp. xi -3.
European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol), 2006, "Air-ground communication safety study causes and recommendations", Brussels: Eurocontrol.
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 2004, "Advisory Circular Nr. 120-51E. Change Description: Subject: Crew Resource Management Training", Federal Aviation Administration.
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 1988, "Advisory Circular Nr. 120-48. Change Description: Subject: Communication and Coordination Between Flight Crewmembers and Flight Attendants", Federal Aviation Administration.
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 2005, "Advisory Circular Nr.121-32A. Dispatch Resource Management Train", Federal Aviation Administration.
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» http://www.skybrary.aero/index.php/Assessment_and_Feedback_of_Non-Technical_Skills_(OGHFA_BN)
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Karlsson, J., 1990, "The integration of automatic speech recognition into the air traffic control system", Princeton, NJ, USA: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Princeton University.
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Krifka, M., Martens, S., Schwarz, F., 2003, "Group interaction in the cockpit: some linguistic factors", Berlin: Humboldt University.
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Lloyd, M. et al., 1996, "Communication Skills for Medicine", New York: Churchill Livingstone.
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Ruiz, L.E., 2004, "Perceptions of communication training among collegiate aviation flight educators", Journal of Air Transportation, Vol. 9, Nº 1, pp. 36-57.
Segrin, C., Flora, J., 2000, "Poor social skills are a vulnerability factor in the development of psychosocial problems", Human Communication Research Journal, Vol. 26, Nº 3, pp. 489-514.
Sexton J.B., Helmreich, R.L., 2000, "Analyzing cockpit communication: the links between language, performance, error, and workload", Human Performance in Extreme Environments, Vol. 5, Nº 1, pp. 63-68.
Shappell, S. A., et al., 2006, "Human error and commercial aviation accidents: a comprehensive, fine-grained analysis using HFACS. DOT/FAA/AM-06/18", Washington, DC: FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine.
Sharkey, J., 2008, "New focus on behavior as airport security evolves", The New York Times, December 29^th, 2008, p. B7.
Spencer, F.C., 1976, "Deductive reasoning in the lifelong continuing education of a cardiovascular surgeon". Archives of Surgery, Vol. 111, Nº 11, pp. 1177-1183.
Taylor, J. C., Thomas R.L., 2003, "Written communication practices as impacted by a maintenance resource management training intervention", Journal of Air Transportation, Vol. 8, Nº 1, pp. 69-90.
Wiegmann, D.A., Shappell, S.A., 2001, "A human error analysis of commercial aviation accidents using the human factors analysis and classification system (HFACS). DOT/FAA/AM-01-/3" , Washington: Office of Aviation Medicine.
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Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
Sep-Dec 2010

History

Received
03 July 2010
Accepted
22 Aug 2010

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

[1] Baron, R., n.d., The Cockpit, the Cabin, and Social Psychology Airline Safety. Airline Safety.com, Available at http://www.alirlinesafety.com/editorials/CockpitCabinPsicology.htm, Access on Sept 18^th, 2010.
» http://www.alirlinesafety.com/editorials/CockpitCabinPsicology.htm

[2] Bolinger, D., 1986, "Intonation and its parts: melody in spoken English", Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA, USA.

[3] Brooks, W.D., Heath, R.W., 1993, "Speech communication", Dubuque: W. C. Brown.

[4] CENIPA, 2008, "Relatório Final A-022/CENIPA/2008", Brasília: Cenipa.

[5] Cushing, S., 1995, "Fatal Words: communication clashes and aircraft crashes", Chicago: Chicago University Press.

[6] Del Prette, A., Del Prette, Z.A.P., 2004, "Psicologia das relações interpessoais: vivências para o trabalho em grupo", 3rd ed., Petrópolis: Vozes.

[7] Dickson D., Hargie O., 2004, "Skilled interpersonal communication: research, theory, and practice", London: Routledge, pp. xi -3.

[8] European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol), 2006, "Air-ground communication safety study causes and recommendations", Brussels: Eurocontrol.

[9] Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 2004, "Advisory Circular Nr. 120-51E. Change Description: Subject: Crew Resource Management Training", Federal Aviation Administration.

[10] Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 1988, "Advisory Circular Nr. 120-48. Change Description: Subject: Communication and Coordination Between Flight Crewmembers and Flight Attendants", Federal Aviation Administration.

[11] Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 2005, "Advisory Circular Nr.121-32A. Dispatch Resource Management Train", Federal Aviation Administration.

[12] Flight Safety Foundation Assessment and Feedback of Non-Technical Skills. SKYbrary, Available at: http://www.skybrary.aero/index.php/Assessment_and_Feedback_of_Non-Technical_Skills_(OGHFA_BN), Access on Sept 24^th, 2009.
» http://www.skybrary.aero/index.php/Assessment_and_Feedback_of_Non-Technical_Skills_(OGHFA_BN)

[13] Fromm, M., 2004, "Medical Students Tested for People Skills", The Washington Times, June 28^th, 2004, pp. A03.

[14] Greene, J.O., Burleson, B.R., 2003, "Handbook of communication and social interaction skills", New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

[15] Harms, F., 2005, "Aviation Safety Newsletter", Available at: http://www.rollanet.org/~mopilots/stlouis/nov2005nws.htm, Access on Nov 4^th, 2010.
» http://www.rollanet.org/~mopilots/stlouis/nov2005nws.htm

[16] Helmreich, R.L., Hines, W.E. and Wilhelm, J.A., 1996, "Issues in crew resource management and automation use: data from line audits", Austin: University of Texas Aerospace.

[17] Johnston, N., 2003, "Responding to emergencies and abnormal events", Dublin: Aerospace Psychology Research Group. Trinity College Dublin.

[18] Karlsson, J., 1990, "The integration of automatic speech recognition into the air traffic control system", Princeton, NJ, USA: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Princeton University.

[19] Klampfer, B. et al., 2001, "Enhancing performance in high risk environments: Recommendations for the use of behavioural markers", Zurich: Group Interaction in High Risk Environments GIHRE Swissair Training Center.

[20] Krifka, M., Martens, S., Schwarz, F., 2003, "Group interaction in the cockpit: some linguistic factors", Berlin: Humboldt University.

[21] Kutz, M.N., 2000, "Developing future aviation leaders: Advice from today's leaders!", The Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research, Vol. 9, Nº 3, pp. 24-32.

[22] Lloyd, M. et al., 1996, "Communication Skills for Medicine", New York: Churchill Livingstone.

[23] MacNeal, E., 1997, "Fatal words: bad mathsemantics can have fatal results", ETC: A Review of General Semantics, Vol. 54, Nº 1, pp. 54.

[24] Mathews, E., 2004, "New provisions for English language proficiency are expected to improve aviation safety", ICAO Journal, Vol. 59, Nº 1, pp. 4-6.

[25] McHenry, J.D., 2008, "Technical maintenance and maintenance management training classes. AMT Society MX Logs Update", Weatogue, CT, USA: Global Jet Services.

[26] Monan, W.P., 1988, "Human factors in air-carrier operations: the hearback problem. NASA Report CR 177398", Moffett Field, CA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

[27] Mozziconacci, S.J., 2002, "Prosody and emotions: speech prosody", In: Proceedings of the Conference Aix-en-Provence, April 11^th-13^th, 2002, France.

[28] Nevile, M., 2006, "Communication in context: a conversational analysis tool for examining recorded data in investigations of aviation occurrences". ATSB Research and Analysis Report B2005/0118".

[29] Parke, B., Patankar K. and Kanki, B., 2003, "Shift turnover related errors in ASRS reports", In: Proceedings of the Twelfth International Symposium of Aviation Psychology, April 14^th -17^th, Dayton, Ohio, pp. 918-923.

[30] Ruiz, L.E., 2004, "Perceptions of communication training among collegiate aviation flight educators", Journal of Air Transportation, Vol. 9, Nº 1, pp. 36-57.

[31] Segrin, C., Flora, J., 2000, "Poor social skills are a vulnerability factor in the development of psychosocial problems", Human Communication Research Journal, Vol. 26, Nº 3, pp. 489-514.

[32] Sexton J.B., Helmreich, R.L., 2000, "Analyzing cockpit communication: the links between language, performance, error, and workload", Human Performance in Extreme Environments, Vol. 5, Nº 1, pp. 63-68.

[33] Shappell, S. A., et al., 2006, "Human error and commercial aviation accidents: a comprehensive, fine-grained analysis using HFACS. DOT/FAA/AM-06/18", Washington, DC: FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine.

[34] Sharkey, J., 2008, "New focus on behavior as airport security evolves", The New York Times, December 29^th, 2008, p. B7.

[35] Spencer, F.C., 1976, "Deductive reasoning in the lifelong continuing education of a cardiovascular surgeon". Archives of Surgery, Vol. 111, Nº 11, pp. 1177-1183.

[36] Taylor, J. C., Thomas R.L., 2003, "Written communication practices as impacted by a maintenance resource management training intervention", Journal of Air Transportation, Vol. 8, Nº 1, pp. 69-90.

[37] Wiegmann, D.A., Shappell, S.A., 2001, "A human error analysis of commercial aviation accidents using the human factors analysis and classification system (HFACS). DOT/FAA/AM-01-/3" , Washington: Office of Aviation Medicine.

[38] Wiemann, J.M., 1977, "Explication and test of a model of communication competence", Human Communication Research, Vol. 3, pp. 195-213.