You just lost situational awareness – now what?

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Pierre Nelson
  • 71st Medical Operations Squadron
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  Situational Awareness is a term often heard, but what exactly does it mean?

Air Force Instruction 11-290, "Cockpit/Crew Resource Management Program," clearly defines SA as a member's continuous perception of self and aircraft in relation to the dynamic environment of flight, threats and mission, and the ability to forecast, then execute tasks based upon that perception.

So what are the dangers when SA is lost?

Aerospace and Operational physiologists train aircrew members on the dangers of human error in flight and how the breakdowns can lead to fatal mishaps.

Aircrew must understand that maintaining awareness of a situation occurring in flight requires sensitivity to location, communications, surrounding traffic, weather, and most important, individual and crew performance.

Warning signs of a loss of SA include:
  • The feeling of being "behind the jet"
  • Poor performance on basic maneuvers
  • Missed tasks and checks
  • Switch errors
  • Erratic aircraft control
  • Missed radio calls
Humans are unusually optimistic in nature and like to believe nothing will go wrong. But they need to be proficient at forecasting what can go wrong and how to deal with these issues.

The practice of forecasting obviously takes more time and effort, but it's what will keep you and others alive.

Whenever SA is lost, the next step is deciding to regain it. A mental checklist that can be very helpful in these situations is the "DECIDE" model, derived from the book, "Basic Flight Physiology," by Dr. Richard Reinhart.

The DECIDE model is:
  • D -- Detect the fact that change has occurred that requires attention
  • E -- Estimate the significance of the change to the operation
  • C -- Choose a safe outcome
  • I -- Identify conceivable actions and their risks to control the change
  • D -- Do the best option/ Discuss with crewmates
  • E -- Evaluate the effect of the action on the change and on progress of the operation
Picture this mental "in-flight checklist" as a tool to gain back SA and determine a safer course of action.

Does having good SA still apply if you're not a pilot or aircrew member? Yes it does.

You can apply the DECIDE model to decisions made about a variety of daily activities and decrease the odds of having an accident.