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AVIA 2100 - Week 8
Human Factors and Cabin Crew
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Cabin crew
• Cabin crew are an integral part of the aircraft operating crew
• Their role is primarily concerned with safety even though service may take up the majority of their time
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Cabin crew
• Cabin crew are the public face of safety within the airline environment
• The actions and lead of cabin crew will have a significant effect on customer behaviour
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Cabin crew as employees
• Cabin crew are employees working in a hostile environment
• On average, there are more lost-time injuries suffered by cabin crew than byJoggers
• Injuries to cabin crew are a serious issue for most airlines even when OH&S legislations does not cover their work environment
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Cabin crew as employees
• Hazards encountered by cabin crew include
– Lifting injuries (pax, luggage, catering trolleys)– Burns and scalds– Turbulence related injuries– RSI– DVT– Food poisoning– Sunburn (lifestyle)– Violent acts by passengers
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Cabin crew as employees
• Hazards can be mitigated in a number of ways:
• Procedures– No service during turbulence– Lifting protocols– Reporting systems
• Ergonomics– Design of lifting harnesses– Design of galleys– Design of uniforms– Design of repeatedly used equipment e.g. trays
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Cabin crew as safety professionals
• Cabin crew have a safety role to play both in flight and in the event of an accident
• In flight, the safety role can cover passenger health as well as aircraft emergencies
• A level of medical training is given to all cabin crew and equipment is carried on board
• The changing demographics of travelers has placed new pressure upon this role
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Cabin crew as medical experts
• All cabin crew are expected to be able to provide assistance to doctors on board or to 3rd party medical services such as MedAir
• Some airlines carry defibrillators for use by the cabin crew
• Cabin crew must also be trained to deal with the deceased
• Are cabin crew adequately prepared for this role?
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• All cabin crew receive emergency procedures training both as ab intios and annually
• Key areas are the management of evacuations, firefighting, operating exits, teamwork and passenger management
Cabin crew as safety professionals
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• A number of accidents have highlighted the critical role that cabin crew can play in flight
• Lack of technical knowledge has been shown to be an issue
Cabin crew as safety professionals
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Cabin crew technical knowledge
• Cabin crew don’t know what they don’t know…
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Cabin crew and CRM
• Many airlines now have either separate or integrated CRM courses for cabin crew
• For some carriers, this was a late development
• The two cultures could be very different and communication was often very poor or non-existent
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Cabin crew and CRM• The flight deck door was generally
seen as a barrier to communication, or indeed an excuse
• The concept of a ‘sterile cockpit’ could be confusing
• Neither crew seemed to understand each other’s role and needs
• Increased security post S11 has had a negative effect on crew communication
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The life of cabin crew
• Several human factors issues are associated with the lifestyle including;
– Party-hard mentality– Exposure to disease– Isolation– Unsociable hours– Pace of work– Sleep loss / disturbance– Workplace injury– Sexuality (STDs, discrimination, harassment)
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Aircraft emergencies
• Up to 70% of aircraft accidents are now survivable
• Assertive cabin crew can expedite emergency evacuations
• Commercial pressures threaten crew complements (1: 36 to 1:50)
• Passengers look to cabin crew for their lead
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Aircraft emergencies
• The ability of cabin crew to perform in an emergency is a function of:
– Training
– Preparation
– Crashworthiness
– Leadership
– Equipment
– Experience
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Aircraft emergencies
• Experience of emergencies may be very limited
• Simulation facilities tend to be much less realistic than for flight deck crew
• Many airlines underestimate the need for training to de-sensitise crew
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The future?
• Increased pressure from aging population and increased cabin crew to passenger ration
• Increasing threat of inflight violence
• Larger aircraft - more difficult to communicate
• Increase in survivable accidents?