PROFESSIONALISM
PROFESSIONAL BEHAVIOR HAS ITS REWARDS
What’s the big deal? Why all of the fuss? Before I answer that, we need to clarify and define a few terms – professional and professionalism. Over the years I have heard
many discussions about whether or not the aircraft maintenance technician (A&P) position is classified or recognized as a professional”occupation. According to Wikipedia: “A professional is a member of a profession or any person who earns their living from a specified activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skills necessary to perform the role of that profession. In addition, most professionals are subject to strict codes of conduct enshrining rigorous ethical and moral obligations. Professional standards of practice and ethics for a particular field are typically agreed upon and maintained through widely-recognized professional associations.” It is obvious to me that anyone who has their A&P license holds a professional position in our industry. We are members of a profession (aviation maintenance), we earn our living from a specified activity, we completed high standards of education and training and we are subject to strict codes of conduct. So, by definition, we are professionals. As a member of the NBAA Safety
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Committee professionalism working group (formed in 2012), one of our first tasks was to define what was meant when we used the term professionalism. This was no easy task. With the goal of having a definition that was short, succinct and easy to understand, we eventually, after much debate, agreed upon this definition: “Professionalism in aviation is the pursuit of excellence through discipline, ethical behavior and continuous improvement.” As you read and understand this definition, you can see that this initiative is not focused on what we are (professionals) — rather, professionalism is about who we are and how we approach everything that we do. We believe with the proper focus on our behaviors we can prevent many accidents and incidents from happening. Now with these definitions out of
the way we can go back and answer the earlier questions, “What’s the big deal? Why all the fuss?” In 2009 the NTSB identified
“unprofessional behaviors” as being a major contributing factor in many accidents and incidents. Recently, the NTSB has taken it up another notch to focus on procedural non-compliance (PNC), a specific unprofessional behavior identified as the primary cause of the Gulfstream IV crash in Bedford, MA. In an
BY: NBAA SAFETY COMMITTEE; PROFESSIONALISM WORKING GROUP MEMBER
OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS “PROFESSIONALISM IN AVIATION” HAS BECOME A FREQUENT TOPIC IN NTSB REPORTS, AVIATION SAFETY SEMINARS AND INDUSTRY PUBLICATIONS. AS A MATTER OF FACT, IN 2010, THE NBAA SAFETY COMMITTEE IDENTIFIED “PROFESSIONALISM” AS ONE OF ITS TOP SAFETY FOCUS AREAS.
effort to bring government oversight (NTSB) together with the users of the airways (operators), it has requested the NBAA get involved to help find a solution. There are several human factor related behaviors that have been identified by the NBAA Safety Committee as areas to focus on. These factors impact all aspects of aviation (i.e. flight, maintenance, dispatch, ground support, etc.).
•PNC (or failure to follow procedures) • When defined procedures, checklists, work cards, maintenance procedures, regulations, etc., are willfully neglected, dismissed, avoided or circumvented.
•Normalization of deviance • When PNC has become standard operating procedure. The rationale is made that the deviation is acceptable because nothing negative has happened. It becomes accepted practice until it’s too late.
•Complacency • When an operation/task is completed without conscious focus or effort — almost as if our brain is on auto-pilot and we are only going through the motions. Our industry is fraught with repetitive operations, done the same way, over and over again. These types of activities
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