Air Carrier Training Insights: Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

By Captain Jacques Drappier, Senior Advisor Training, Airbus Over the last few years, and more so since the Colgan and AF447 accidents, loss of control, manual flying skills and automation has been at the heart of many discussions in about all major aviation conferences During the last decades, automation has been brought into the cockpit to help the crew and to increase the overall safety of the flight. We all agree that the major technological advances in aviation have resulted in faster, more efficient and safer operations. Without this automation, such things as CATIII, RVSM and RNP would simply be impossible. I believe that in the continuous improvement of safety over the years, automation has been instrumental, and that the continued efforts of the manufacturers to further enhance safety, economy and comfort will bring even more automation in the cockpit. But nothing is perfect, and with the undeniable advantages, automation has also brought some side effects. Manual flying skills A number of high profile accidents over recent years have opened the awareness that one of these side effects could be the loss of the manual flying skill and over reliance on automation. ICAO shows Loss of Control as the major factor for fatalities. Airbus studies show that in the FBW aircraft, overruns are a greater danger. But are we really looking at a problem of erosion of manual flying skills? Or are we looking at an issue of airmanship? When looking at cases where flying skill was blamed, often the real cause of the accident was a lack of situational awareness, lack of airmanship, or disregard of rules. But even if it is true that we have lost these skills, is it really important? And if we answer yes to these two questions, then what can we do about it? That is what I want to discuss in the next 20 minutes. Is it true? Most of the accidents happen in approach and landing phases, where typically the pilot could be manual flying. Some examples are Toronto, Sao Paolo, or the Philippines where overruns happened after manual flights. But the question remains if handling is the main factor or a contributing factor.

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Air Carrier Training Insights: Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

Tail strikes and hard landings are probably more indicative of real handling problems. However, we must be cautious of making easy conclusions. Certainly if you hit the tail during flare, or slam it in the ground, there is a handling problem. But maybe the un-stabilized approach didnt help? The Loss of control accidents would indicate that basic flying skills are either missing or have eroded, and there has been a clear cry for specific training. But again, a lot of these accidents also show lack of recognition or anticipation. A study on the impact of glass cockpits in 1985 showed issues with automation. A study on performance of pilots in 1995 showed first signs of erosion of skills. So the problem is not new and probably getting worse, although we do not have objective scientific data to support it. But lets assume that the industry has indeed a problem, and that yes, it is true. I want to stress that we have to avoid generalizing and thinking that all pilots have lost their skills. That is simply not true. In our training center we certainly see some who are a bit rough on the edges, but we also see some excellent handling. Is it important? Now if the first question is not black or white, this one is even less easy to answer. We need indeed to see what the impact is of this reduction of general handling skill on the safety to determine the importance. I remember flying the B707, a fly by cable plane with no hydraulics and some very stiff controls and lots of lag between any control action and aircraft reaction. Carrying out a crosswind landing was really a challenge and it took real handling skills to master this plane. But then again, a lot of training was done: simulators were not very good so we spent hours in the pattern doing all kinds of dangerous stuff. On the line we would fly the plane at least to 10,000 feet before engaging the primitive autopilot, and nearly every approach was hand flown. Today we have fly by wire, automated planes, where the pure handling skills needed in daily life are very limited. The automation has moved the emphasis away from flying the plane and has allowed the commander to free his brain from this lower level task and use all his brainpower to manage the flight. Hand flying is reduced to the minute after TO and maybe the last 2 minutes before the landing. And because flying is so much easier, and the environment has become so much more challenging, training emphasis has shifted for very good reasons to more procedural training, LOFTS, CRM etc.

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Air Carrier Training Insights: Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

So we all agree that the automation is better for overall safety, efficiency and comfort. Is it then important to keep the same level of manual flying skills as in the old days, or are other elements today more important? So actually whereas the use or importance of manual flying skills is reduced in normal operations, what I would call 95 per cent plus, these skills are necessary when it comes to some abnormal situations or challenging conditions, where then actually pretty sharp piloting is required. The transition between smooth easy flying on AP and being challenged by hair-raising situations can be very abrupt in the modern cockpits. In some respects, automated aircraft may require a higher standard of basic stick and rudder skills, if only because these skills are practiced less often and maybe called upon in the most demanding emergency situations. What is also important is the perception by the pilot of his own piloting skills. Let me explain this Our captain has been flying for days, months, years according to company procedures letting the automation take care of the basic handling and doing an excellent job as a captain. He has done his compulsory one ILS with engine inoperative in the FFS every six months, and that has been it. Now one day he is confronted with some weather in an airport, which is not instrumentapproach equipped, and he faces the challenge of a manual approach and landing in crosswind. Now he becomes worried because he starts realizing that maybe he is not up to it. He has not done that in months or years. But diverting does not seem an option because the book says he is within limits. His anxiety now takes over and deteriorates his performance even more. Results can be pretty bad. Furthermore, physical flying skills are one of the critical elements of situational awareness. Maintaining proficiency allows a pilot to devote less mental energy to flying the aircraft, thus allowing more attention to be devoted to other mental tasks. So finally, is it important or not? I believe that the importance has been reduced from the past, but that basic handling skills are still essential for safe operations. What can we do about it? So since we believe that the erosion of flying skill is real, and since we believe there is an importance to this, the question is what to do about it? We cannot answer that however, without further analyzing what is the root cause of this erosion. It is too easy to blame the automation. It is there to help, and most of it is selectable, meaning you can ignore it or switch it off.

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Air Carrier Training Insights: Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

The study I referred to earlier came to the conclusion that there is no evidence that the deterioration of skills was solely because of a lack of practice. Other contributing factors could be in play, and this applies especially today. Lets talk about a few First, if we say there is erosion of flying skills, we assume these were there to start with. Lets begin with the first officers. Do you really believe that the cadets today have the same capabilities as those that came out of the schools 30 years ago, or out of the military? Selfsponsoring has brought a competitive element in the training, unfortunately meaning : the cheaper the better. Of course some schools still do a decent job, but too many pilots are qualified with very shaky skills, and how do you build experience on a shaky foundation? Next are the young captains. We used to have 10 years plus of first officer before transitioning to the captain seat. Now we see in some areas of the world upgrades to commander in less then four years because of the rapid expansion of the business. Did they get the mentoring that they deserve before starting command upgrade? Where they given the opportunity to hone their skills during the type rating? Did they get serious and comprehensive command training? Thirdly, if these skills existed, then why are they eroding? Obviously the lack of practice or training can be the only explanation. Pilots need to maintain their flight skills and be able to maneuver the aircraft manually within the standards set forth in the relevant regulations. This can only be achieved through regular practice. Clearly here we have a dilemma. On one hand it is obvious that company policies are being set up insisting or mandating the maximum use of automation for the benefit of safety and economy. So there is a strong pressure to avoid hand flying. Airbus recommends in its Golden Rules the Optimal use of automation. On the other hand, without practice any motor skill will diminish, so will the piloting skills. It looks imperative that the pilots get a chance to practice. But even if the airline allows the captain to choose to fly manually sometimes, operational circumstances such as fatigue, traffic or weather will reduce further the opportunity for manual flying. Training If we accept the above series of root causes, namely lack of proper initial training, lack of experience and lack of recency, then training is the obvious answer. Initial: The initial training is an important element in the whole career of the pilot, and the foundation of his future performance.

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Air Carrier Training Insights: Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

Sufficient time should be spent to ensure the young cadet has understood and mastered the basic flying skills before moving further in the curriculum. Type rating: During the type rating the handling skills should be developed/refreshed. We must use the time in the FFS to do more handling exercises and do the automation exercises in the FTD. At least two sessions of simulator should be devoted to the handling. Recurrent: This is where we need to put more effort. In the recent years we have seen a reduction in overall time spent in the simulator in many areas of the world. Programs such as AQP can certainly help in optimizing the time in the FFS, and EBT will also greatly improve the efficiency of the recurrent sessions. But that will not be enough. If we want the pilots to remain proficient in manual handling in abnormal or difficult situation, if we want them to be proficient in upset recovery, crosswind landings etc, then we will need dedicated sessions in the simulator. I know that Emirates, although being an early follower of EBT, has introduced supplementary sessions of pure handling for all its pilots. I am sure others are going to follow because if we take this issue serious, we will all come to the same conclusion. We have come a long way in the training industry. We have implemented CRM, we have introduced LOFTS, we are on top of the automation, but we seem to have lost something else in the process and it is time to correct that. Conclusion The debate on handling skills or pilot skills has been going for a long time. There have always been people with more feeling, better touch, and more anticipation. Over the years rules have been established, guidelines developed and standards been set to evaluate these skills. In a continuous-and-successful quest for safety, the industry has introduced more and more tools to assist the pilots in their tasks. These tasks have been evolving as well, into more management of the airplane instead of flying. Fly by wire was certainly one of the most significant improvements introduced 25 years ago. It let the pilot fly manually while giving a large protection against gross errors, and significantly reduces the difficulty of handling the plane. During the development and further refinement of the control laws we have always been careful to keep the basic handling principles the same. But handling skill, be it less demanding then before, is still needed. And proficiency at that can only be achieved through training and practice. Regulators should carefully review the situation and see if the present rules are sufficient, and if enough data is available to determine which maneuvers and how much hand flying is sufficient for the modern pilots to keep their basic skill sharp.

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Air Carrier Training Insights: Maintaining Manual Flying Skills

Operators should establish their rules and SOPs with safety as a prime goal, but without forgetting that safety one day can mean to be able to skillfully hand fly an approach and landing. In the future with RNP approaches, NextGen etc , automation will be increasingly mandated. If a balance between manual flying and automation in line operations is not practical or possible due to the type of operation, then training is the answer. It may be in the best interest of safety to enforce a strict automation policy, but then you have to train in the FFS for the unexpected or exceptional manual flying cases. You cannot expect your pilots to handle a plane like a test pilot in 45-knot crosswind without sufficient training, or recurrent training. Some companies have understood this and have taken some positive steps. We must also remember my statement of the beginning -today we concentrate the discussion on handling skills, but most of the problems created by the erosion or lack of these skills could have been avoided by good airmanship, applying CRM, using threat and error management. We must continue to practice handling, but balance it with much more effective employment of the defenses to prevent the aircraft ever arriving in the unsafe condition. Overall, each member of this industry has his role to play, and together we must strive towards our ultimate goal of safety, without forgetting any aspect of what it might encompass. The superior pilot is one, who by superior airmanship avoids situations where he needs the use of his superior skills. About the Author:Captain Drappier is a former Sabena management pilot. Whilst with Sabena he held various positions in the training and flight operations departments, ranging from instructor pilot to Director of the ab initio school, ending his time with them as Executive Vice President of Operations. At Airbus he has been four years responsible of all training programs, followed by two years as Senior Director Flight and Cabin Crew Training. His responsibilities included the development of all A380 training material. In 2007 he took the position of Vice President Training and Flight Operations, responsible for all training matters including four Airbus training centers, and all Flight Ops deliverables like operational documentation, performance software and Safety management systems. In Jan 2011 Jacques left the executive role and is representing Airbus as a senior consultant for training and flight operations matters worldwide. Jacques Drappier has 12,500 hours and has flown all Airbus types from the first A300B2 to the A380, and is an instructor on all Airbus FBW. He was born in Belgium in 1952.

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