Out Of Control?

The FAA, NTSB and the aviation community have spent a lot of time and effort analyzing how and why pilots lose control of their aircraft, historically the leading cause of fatal general aviation accidents. A recent report by the FAA/industry General Aviation Joint Steering Committee (GAJSC-see the sidebar on the opposite page), closely looked at the reasons why, highlighting dozens of recommended mitigations to reduce loss-of-control (LOC) accidents. Many of its recommendations have great value.

Key Takeaways:

• Loss of Control (LOC) is the leading cause of fatal general aviation accidents, with current safety efforts often addressing the final links in the accident chain rather than underlying causes.
• The article argues that poor risk management is the true root cause of most LOC accidents, a factor often overlooked by traditional accident investigations.
• Effective prevention requires integrating comprehensive risk management knowledge and skills into pilot training, including new certification standards and risk-based flight reviews for existing pilots.
• Pilots are encouraged to proactively implement personal LOC prevention programs, emphasizing basic flying skills, continuous flight risk analysis, and scenario-based risk management during flight reviews.

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