NOTECHS

NOTECHS is a system used to assess the non-technical (social and cognitive) skills of crew members in the aviation industry. Introduced in the late 1990s, the system has been widely used by airlines during crew selection process, picking out individuals who possess capable skills that are not directly related to aircraft controls or systems. In aviation, 70 percent of all accidents are induced from pilot error, lack of communication and decision making being two contributing factors to these accidents. NOTECHS assess and provide feedback on the performance of pilots' social and cognitive skills to help minimize pilot error and enhance safety in the future. NOTECHS system also aims to improve the Crew Resource Management training system.

Two main non-technical skills that transfer to the aircraft are social and cognitive skills. Social skills are behaviors mostly done verbally through communication, allowing crew members to discuss possible conflicts and work together to resolve problems. It heavily emphasizes teamwork, a critical component for an effective operation of aircraft which impacts aviation safety. Examples of communication between crew members include acknowledging commands, conducting briefings, and conveying information, all essential components for a safe and efficient flight. The Federal Aviation Administration also announced that important areas of communication improvements include pre-flight briefings,and landing procedures. Cognitive skills are mental processes occurred for gaining situation awareness and selecting decisions, it includes tasks such as planning, prioritizing and decision making. This set of skill cannot be observed directly, but it can be inferred by examiners when pilot state a decision, an option has taken place. A pilot with a strong cognitive mind is more proficient in emergency situations, having a bigger mental capacity to assess the situation and monitor progression on goals. The framework for NOTECHS is divided into three different levels.

Social and Cognitive skills are the main non-technical skills evaluated. Both can be broken down into four different categories:

Elements are subset of a category. For example, the elements under Co-operation are: Team-building and maintaining, Considering Others, Supporting others, and Conflict Solving. All these elements tie in with the theme of being a group, communicating and cooperating as a team. The test subjects are evaluated in the following elements:

Considering others

Supporting others

Conflict solving

Providing and maintaining standards

Planning and co-ordination

Workload management

Awareness of external environment

Awareness of Time

...
Wikipedia