Various factors defining the success or failure in a multi-crew operations depend on communication, situational awareness, problem solving, decision making, judgement, leadership – followership, stress management, critique and interpersonal skills [2, 3]. In this tragic accident flawed decision making affected good judgement, leading to deliberately compromised situational awareness, aggravated by self-imposed stress and perceived workload with failed teamwork, broken down communication and poor leadership. Continue reading
Who failed in Crash of Flight IX-812? Part 2
Who failed in Crash of Flight IX-812?
The report on accident of Air India Express Flight IX-812 highlighted several factors which resulted in the tragic loss of 158 lives [1]. Limiting to the human factors alone, there were both physiological limitations of the crew and failure of crew resource management (CRM), besides organisational shortcomings. Continue reading
Fatigued Pilots! What Happened to Flight IX-812
Air India’s low cost airline, Air India Express, operates a scheduled Quick Turn Around flight IX-811/812 on Mangalore-Dubai-Managlore sector. The onward flight from Mangalore is at 21:35 H (IST) while the return from Dubai is scheduled at 02:45 H (IST, local time 01:15 H), to arrive at Managlore at 06:30 H (IST). On 22 May 2010, while flight IX 812 was landing at Managlore’s tabletop runway, the Boeing 737-800 aircraft overshot the runway resulting in tragic loss of 158 lives, including 6 crew [1]. Continue reading
Tired eh! Physical Cost of AGSM
Fatigue is the cost of correctly performed Anti-G straining manoeuvre (AGSM) to fight against the +Gz forces during air combat. Being an isometric exercise, akin to a 50 or 100 m race or weight lifting, the muscles maintain sustained contraction during AGSM to generate energy anaerobically. Thus time “to fatigue” and of “fatigue recovery” determine the ability of a combat aircrew to withstand high sustained G during air combat maneuvers [1]. Continue reading
Protection against the ‘G’
Average relaxed ‘G’ tolerance of combat aircrew varies between 4 to 5G, although the range may be 3 to 8G. Yet, one must note there are large individual variations in G tolerance and even in the same individual, the tolerance may vary on different days or different times of the day. It is here that the combat ready aircrew must remember those factors that lower one’s G tolerance, and must take precautions against the same. Continue reading