Longer hauls…

In time, the technical crew manages time by tracking the progress of the flight. They compare fuel burn against the projected numbers on their flight plan, update weather forecasts and consider when a change in flight level may be appropriate. Their minds criss-cross scenarios and consider where they would divert in the event of one emergency or another. Even so, this is not a cycle of activity that operates on a constant infinite ‘loop’. There is also a good deal of downtime.

The crew may never have met before signing on at pre-flight briefing. Their age gap may be more than generational and their interests just as varied. Normally, conversations across the flight deck will warm up with generic questions about family, friends and flying. Where do you live? Where were you flying before the airlines? However, sometimes it can be difficult.

Some new recruits have limited flight experience before joining a commercial airline and can offer little to the conversation. Similarly, the family issues of an older pilot may well be lost on the sprightly young single aviator with far different considerations. This ‘gradient’ across the cockpit can sometimes prove to be a little awkward and the longer the flight sector, the longer it may seem. Check fuel, check weather, consider our options….what now? The hours can seem slow.

Yet it is important that the two pilots of potentially vastly different heritages and social demographics are able to function efficiently. A good deal of time has been spent studying human factors to ensure that the cockpit gradient is a healthy one. There must always be some gradient as the Captain possesses the ultimate authority of the safe conduct over the flight. However, crew resource management (CRM) has evolved greatly over the decades to ensure that necessary operational communication doesn’t suffer from awkward silences.

Still, beyond the text book on human factors, at its core CRM is good manners and common sense. Everyday courtesy and a degree of emotional intelligence can go a long way to making the flight deck a more pleasant workplace on the long haul. And while a cockpit gradient needs to exist, there is no need for civility and mutual respect to be a fatality. Conversely, human failings such as bravado, ego and complacency do not belong in the cockpit.

Frequently, a young First Officer can arrive on the flight deck with the stick and rudder skills of Bob Hoover. Fresh from the simulator and keen to impress, their enthusiasm is impressive. However, it would seem the more subtle aspects of the First Officer’s role can often only come with experience. Techniques such as ‘managing upwards’ and ‘appropriate assertion’ are discussed in training, but line flying is where the nuances of such skills are ultimately refined.

Even so, certain aspects are not about subtlety. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) have designed the operational language to transcend any generational or cultural boundaries. Furthermore, SOPs facilitate an expectation of what comes next in the normal flow of operations. When that normal flow does not take place, it is the first ‘red flag’ that something may be out of place and simultaneously offers either pilot the opportunity to raise the matter.

That is why the somewhat robotic nature of flight deck procedures can seem boring, but it is that adherence to SOPs that can provide the greatest safeguards. In an industry that is commercially sensitive to On-Time-Performance and yet so dynamic that any number of distractions can enter the flight deck, SOPs are vital.

As sector lengths continue to increase, these concepts of CRM and SOPs need to be respected more than ever. They are set to a backdrop of growing flight and duty times and reducing layovers. Jet lag, fatigue, back-of-clock duties and family absences are all elements that can challenge concentration and focus. The long haul can have long periods of monitoring in a state of low arousal.

Even at our best, we humans are not the best at monitoring, so as we further push our natural instincts in a relatively unnatural environment we must continually consider the potential pitfalls. For around 200, 000 years we retreated at sunset and rose at sunrise. Now, for the last blink of our existence, we have asked our physiology to cross oceans in a matter of hours and often in total darkness, except for the glow of the instrument panel. Darwin’s natural selection progressed over thousands of years while aviation has evolved in a heartbeat.

The market will dictate whether the ultra long haul meets the needs of the paying public. Undoubtedly, research will continue into achieving such flights at ever higher speeds, whether it be through skipping of the atmosphere, or some futuristic powerplant – who knows?

However, until that time comes, crossing our planet will still involve human beings at the helm of long haul airliners for extended periods. As these flights become longer, aviation must continually assess and improve how highly skilled people in a confined cockpit can best safely execute their duties. As these boundaries are extended, there is little doubt that both man and machine will be exposed to ever longer hauls.