One of the vital tenets of a strong safety culture is open reporting free from reprisal. Not only does this facilitate improvement in training and policy, but safety-conscious pilots also can learn from the situations and mistakes others have found themselves in. Through my work on multiple aviation safety action programs (ASAPs) and avid reading of my airline’s published incident reports, I like to think I have learned a substantial amount from the experience of others.
One of the most common contributing factors in these reports was fatigue. On top of that, there was a general sentiment that before whatever event occurred that warranted the report, the pilot felt that they were mostly fit for flight. It was only after an error occurred or circumstances arose that heightened their workload when the pilot realized that fatigue was affecting their ability.
