Pilot Deviations

Wednesday, October 28, 2020 at 09:07 AM ET

Verified

Expectation bias or simply a lack of paying attention can cause any of us to make mistakes with potentially serious safety consequences

Key Takeaways:

A Pilot Deviation (PD) is an action violating aviation regulations; ATC issues a "possible PD" (Brasher Warning) and reports it but does not determine guilt, acting as reporters, not "sky police."
Upon receiving a "possible PD" in flight, pilots should respond professionally. After landing, it's recommended to review the incident, call the facility calmly (or state preparedness for future discussion), and always file a NASA ASRS report.
PDs serve as learning opportunities, contributing to systemic safety improvements. They may lead to follow-up from the Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) for educational purposes or, in severe cases, certificate action.

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Simply fly long enough and you’ll eventually make a boneheaded or innocent mistake that gets in ATC’s way. Those may say a Pilot Deviation (PD) is where they “screwed up” or “ATC is blaming me for…” I’ve personally heard it put in many different—often creative—ways; I should keep a list.

Here is how the FAA defines it in FAA Order 8020.11D, “Aircraft Accident and Incident Notification, Investigation, and Reporting;” Chapter 1, “General Information;” Paragraph 7, Definitions: “Pilot Deviation (PD) – An action of a pilot that results in the violation of a Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) or a North American Aerospace Defense (Command Air Defense Identification Zone) tolerance.”