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Resolving Ambiguity in the Cockpit

Resolving Ambiguity in the Cockpit. Jim Higgins UND Aerospace. What is ambiguity? A state of uncertainty, or a state of being understood in two or more possible ways “What heading should we be on?” “Which way did our target move?” “What keystroke do I need to bring up that map?”.

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Resolving Ambiguity in the Cockpit

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  1. Resolving Ambiguity in the Cockpit Jim Higgins UND Aerospace

  2. What is ambiguity? • A state of uncertainty, or a state of being understood in two or more possible ways • “What heading should we be on?” • “Which way did our target move?” • “What keystroke do I need to bring up that map?”

  3. What causes ambiguity? • Loss of attention/focus • Forgetfulness (memory deficit) • Wrong perception • Improper time usage • Poor spatial aptitude Source: adapted from O-Brien, & O’Hare, 2007

  4. What causes ambiguity? (Cont.) • Almost all causes of ambiguity have an associated Insufficient Residual Attention Span • Due to: • Task saturation • Distractions • Emergency/abnormal situations • Improves with: • Experience • Use of SOP

  5. What causes ambiguity? (Cont.) • Although rare, ambiguity can also be caused by: • Personality conflicts (causes distractions) • Hidden agendas

  6. Is all ambiguity the same? • No • Sometimes, ambiguity is very apparent (known ambiguity) • Other times, it is subtle, and the crew may not even be aware (unknown ambiguity) • Closely related to a loss of situational awareness • How are we aware, we lost awareness?

  7. Systemic ambiguity • Created by the system • Example • Burlington, Vermont mountain-GPWS issue

  8. Systemic issue specific to the CBP which may cause ambiguity • COA • GFK LOA • FARs • CBP Procedures • Client Procedures

  9. Unknown Ambiguity • Long before the crew realizes they are uncertain, there were likely many indications of future ambiguity

  10. Clues that Ambiguity is forming • Failure to meet expected checkpoint on flight plan or profile • Failure to adhere to SOP • Information from two or more sources doesn’t agree

  11. Clues that Ambiguity is forming (Cont.) • Failure to communicate fully and effectively – vague or incomplete statements, not closing the loop • “I think so” • “We should be okay” • “We will probably make it”

  12. Clues that Ambiguity is forming (Cont.) • If something doesn’t look or feel right, it probably isn’t • The #1 rule for SA • Why is this a good indicator?

  13. Ambiguity Countermeasures • Prioritize (Aviate, navigate, communicate) • Solicit input from all crew members • Solicit input from ATC • Plan ahead (spread out workload) • During distractions, assign responsibility • Speak up when SA starts deteriorating • If interrupted, start procedure over • Create reminders (visual/aural)

  14. Ambiguity Countermeasures (Cont.) • Create a crewed procedure to regain the situation • The “RESET” button • If someone says they are experiencing ambiguity, pull all personnel off of their task (unless safety is affected) to resolve ambiguity

  15. Ambiguity Countermeasures (Cont.) • Communication procedures • Prevent open-loop communication • Eliminate indefinite statements: • “I think so” • “We should be” • “Probably” • It is the responsibility for all crewmembers to resolve ambiguity

  16. Ambiguity Countermeasures (Cont.) • For personality conflicts • Consider not flying together • Focus on what’s right, not who is right • If it’s ongoing (and not resolved), discussion outside the GCS • For Hidden Agendas • How to spot these? • Technique is to “unhide” the agenda first • Then form a plan

  17. Ambiguity Countermeasures (Systemic) • Strong procedural training • Make normal procedures rote (or almost rote) • Make normal procedures as simple as possible • Drill, drill, drill • Avoid expectancy (should be taught with rogue techniques) • Create an overarching priority system • Aviate, navigate, communicate (in that order)

  18. What happens if Ambiguity remains unresolved? • Frustration and anger will develop • SA will decrease • CVR accident transcripts are full of unresolved ambiguity

  19. Handling professional disagreements • Remember, focus on what, not who • If time permits, outline reasons • If time permits, outline consequences • Everyone should agree to err on the side of safety • So, if a disagreement cannot be solved, the crew should go with the course of action which results in the least risk • Debrief later

  20. Teamwork Qualities (which help reduce ambiguity) • Envisioning • Modeling • Receptiveness • Influence • Adaptability • Initiative

  21. How do you teach people to resolve Ambiguity? • “ILL-Defined” scenario • Rogue Training

  22. References O’Brien, K. S., & O’Hare, D. (2007). Situational awareness ability and cognitive skills training in a complex real-world task. Ergonomics, 50(7) 1064-1091.

  23. Phew…we’re done!Thank You.Questions?

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