FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute

Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-20/01

Title and Subtitle: Problem Solving/Decision Making and Procedures for Unexpected Events: A Literature Review

Report Date: January 2019

Authors: Pruchnicki S, Key K, Rao AH

Abstract: The ultimate goal of this report is to provide the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) with insight into how resilience engineering (RE) concepts can be used to help pilots better manage unexpected events [such as inflight loss of control (LOC-I), inflight upsets, and aerodynamic stalls]. Specifically, the objectives of this literature review are to (1) Identify the types of problem-solving/decision-making skills that could be applied in unexpected events to produce better outcomes; (2) Understand how RE concepts across safety-sensitive domains might apply to aviation, and (3) Suggest a future research path to develop procedures for pilots to use when facing unexpected events [including those with and without checklists and training guidance].

Key Words: resilience engineering; unexpected event; surprise; flight deck

No. of Pages: 43