Pilots are imperfect by design. We’re human, after all. On any given flight, a pilot is faced with dozens of interrelated decisions that guide the airplane to its destination, hopefully intact and without incident. Most of the time, we make good decisions and our flights end safely, even if we execute some elements of the flight imperfectly — a missed radio call or a less than smooth landing, for example. However, multiple mistakes coupled with poor decisions can form “the accident chain” that is the foundation of nearly every National Transportation Safety Board accident report.
Pilot Attitudes in Training
![An instructor and a student preflight a Cessna 152 before a lesson. [Credit: Richard Steiger]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/httpswww.flyingmag.comsitesflyingmag.comfilesimages201804pilot_attitude_in_training_image_1-1.jpeg)
Key Takeaways:
- Aviation accidents are often rooted in human imperfections and poor pilot decisions, emphasizing the critical role of flight instructors in developing safer judgment.
- Flight instructors are key to improving pilot safety by recognizing and correcting five FAA-defined hazardous attitudes: Anti-Authority, Impulsivity, Invulnerability, Macho, and Resignation.
- By addressing these detrimental attitudes, instructors help cultivate pilots who are better at managing risk, making sound decisions, and ultimately, flying more safely.
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