FROM THE EDITOR
THERE’S NO GREY IN AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE — IT’S EITHER BLACK OR WHITE
A quote that Marlin Priest said when EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
JOE ESCOBAR
jescobar@DOMmagazine.com 920.747.0195
I was interviewing him for this month’s profile story is stuck in my mind: “We used to say that sometimes we needed to be fluid, because being flexible was too rigid. But even in those fluid moments, there are still rules. We would not do anything illegal, immoral or unsafe. Those were our three non-negotiables — what we lived by.” All mechanics and managers face pressure on the job. Whether you work in a corporate flight department like Priest did or work in a repair station, FBO or other maintenance organization, you have more than likely faced many instances of pressure. There are inevitable situations where someone is standing over you saying, “We need to get that aircraft out NOW!” How we react to these situations is all about our integrity and character. Unfortunately, some choose to do whatever it takes to get the job done — sometimes sacrificing safety by ignoring regulations and company procedures. That is a recipe for disaster. The regulations are put in place to protect us and our customers. Likewise, company procedures are developed so we have standards of performance and excellence. Normalization of deviance is a phenomenon that occurs when people start deviating from the rules and regulations. It may start of as a small violation such as not checking the torque in the maintenance manual for a particular task. If that person doesn’t get caught, they figure they can bend the rules a little further. Before you know it, they are performing tasks without referring to the maintenance manual or work instructions as all. It is a slippery slope of ever-increasing non-compliance. But normalization of deviance doesn’t occur just at work. Our character determines how we handle situations we find ourselves in outside of work that can influence our ability to perform our tasks at hand. In his article “Crew Appreciation Night” in this issue, Ben Janaitis discusses a situation some
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of us have probably found ourselves in after work hours — the normalization of alcohol abuse. Even the best-intentioned worker can find it difficult to do the right thing when peer pressure and normalization of deviance comes to play. So why do we break the rules?
Gordon Dupont gives a good example of normalization of deviance that most of us are guilty of — speeding. “Let’s look at the most common rule broken
every day all around the world — the speed limit. If someone tells me that he or she has never broken a rule, they are either a saint or a liar, and I would suspect the latter. If the speed limit sign says 50 mph, then it doesn’t mean 51, 52 or higher. Yet the average driver will be between 5 and 10 mph over the speed limit unless the weather is bad, there is a police officer close by or your mother-in-law is in the car with you. So why do we do it? While some us may think that our above average driving skills preclude us from having to follow the rule (tell that one to the judge), the answer is actually very simple. We foresee no negative consequences in doing so and the positive consequence of getting home sooner serves to justify the rule-breaking. Rule-breaking at work goes along the same
lines. No negative consequences and at least one positive consequence.” Creating a positive work culture can help
prevent these occurrences from happening. In addition, managers need to lead by example. We can’t expect our team to stick to the rules and regulations if we habitually ignore them ourselves. “Do as I say, not as I do” just doesn’t cut it. In closing, the late Bill O’Brien used to
say this to the attendees at his seminars, “There is no grey in aviation. There is only black and white. It’s either right or wrong. Once you allow yourself to cross that line, you have lost your integrity! Once you do, it is difficult, if not impossible, to get it back.” Thanks for reading, and we appreciate
your feedback! Joe
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