Pilot error

Pilot error (sometimes called cockpit error) is a term used to describe a decision, action or inaction by a pilot or crew of an aircraft determined to be a cause or contributing factor in an accident or incident. The term includes mistakes, oversights, lapses in judgment, gaps in training, adverse habits, and failures to exercise due diligence in a pilot's duties.

The causes of pilot error include psychological and physiological human limitations, and various forms of threat and error management have been implemented into pilot training programs to teach crew members how to deal with impending situations which arise throughout the course of a flight.

Accounting for the way human factors influence the actions of pilots is now considered standard practice by accident investigators when examining the chain of events that led to an accident.

Usually in an accident caused by pilot error, it is assumed that the pilot in command (captain) makes an error unintentionally. However, an intentional disregard for a standard operating procedure (or warning) is still considered to be a pilot error, even if the pilot's actions justified criminal charges.

Pilot error is a decision or action mistake by pilots when there is an emergency. As the commander of the aircraft, the pilot is always regarded to be one of the most important factors. The decisions of the pilot determine everything on the craft, and can be affected by countless external elements. Analyses of accident patterns can have value for the improvement of passengers safety.

The pilot may be a factor even during adverse weather conditions if the investigating body deems that the pilot did not exercise due diligence. The responsibility for the accident in such a case would depend upon whether the pilot could reasonably know of the danger and whether he or she took reasonable steps to avoid the weather problem. Flying into a hurricane (for other than legitimate research purposes) would be considered pilot error; flying into a microburst would not be considered pilot error if it was not detectable by the pilot, or in the time before this hazard was understood. Some weather phenomena (such as clear-air turbulence or mountain waves) are difficult to avoid, especially if the aircraft involved is the first aircraft to encounter the phenomenon in a certain area at a certain time.

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