NASA Ames Research Center - Abnormal Situations in Aviation

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An International Symposium on Emergency and Abnormal Situations in Aviation was held June 10th and 11th, 2003, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, Calif. Sponsored by the research team conducting the Emergency and Sbnormal Situations Project in the Systems Safety Research Branch of the Human Factors Research and Technology Division at NASA Ames Research Center, this event brought together more than 120 participants from industry groups representing pilots, air traffic controllers, flight attendants, maintenance technicians and airline management from around the globe. Several domestic and international governmental agencies also were represented. All participants and presenters are concerned by the numerous challenges involved when an emergency or abnormal situation occurs onboard an aircraft. These challenges have serious safety implications, and how they are met directly relates to whether the overall situation is handled effectively or results in an accident.

The symposium was highlighted by presentations from individuals representing the Air Line Pilots Association, Airline Dispatchers Federation, Boeing Company, Continental Airlines, Eurocontrol, NASA Ames Research Center/SJSUF, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Trinity University, Dublin, airframe manufacturers and United Airlines. The keynote speaker for the event was the Honorable Robert Francis, a former vice chairman of the NTSB and distinguished leader in the field of aviation safety.

The topics addressed through these presentations included:

Issues in the development, structure, design, types, availability and use of emergency and abnormal checklists and procedures
Crew coordination and response to emergencies and abnormal situations; human performance capabilities and limitations under high stress and high workload conditions
Economic and regulatory pressures pertaining to dealing with and training for emergencies and abnormal situations
Flight crews communicating and coordinating with flight attendants, air traffic controllers, maintenance personnel, dispatchers and others when dealing with an emergency or abnormal situation
The use of automation during emergencies and abnormal situations
Emergency and abnormal situation training for flight and cabin crews
Philosophies and policies of dealing with emergencies and abnormal situations

The goals of the symposium were threefold: inform and educate the participants about the depth and breadth of the issues and how they inter-relate, discover new issues and concerns and identify those that have the greatest importance for the industry related to safety, and finally, to bring together individuals and groups that are working to address similar issues in the hope of creating linkages and collaborative partnerships. Reactions to the symposium were exceedingly positive and the participants enthusiastically requested that this symposium be only the first of others that would assist the aviation industry and governments worldwide in identifying and addressing the critical safety concerns related to the handling of emergency and abnormal situations in aviation.