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United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Safety Briefing

Advanced Preflight After Maintenance

The General Aviation Joint Steering Committee (GAJSC) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have determined that a significant number of general aviation fatalities could be avoided if pilots were to conduct more thorough preflight inspections of aircraft that have just been...

WINGS Pilot Proficiency Program

Proficiency training is required for most professional pilots and plays a key role in aviation safety. Studies have shown that pilots who participate in regular proficiency training are much less likely to experience accidents. The FAA’s WINGS Pilot Proficiency Program is one way for GA pilots...

Vmc Training and Angle of Attack

The General Aviation Joint Steering Committee (GAJSC) has determined that improved and more frequent single-engine training in multi-engine airplanes could reduce the number of multi-engine loss of control events. In particular, refresher training on Vmc is recommended to improve pilot response...

Transition Training

The lack of transition training has been cited as a causal factor in many GA accidents. Accidents frequently result from pilots being unprepared for challenges presented by the new, or different, aircraft they are flying. Even when pilots are legally certificated to operate aircraft within a...

Startle Response

Fatal general aviation accidents often result from inappropriate responses to unexpected events. Humans are subject to a “startle response” when they are faced with unexpected emergency situations and may delay action or initiate inappropriate action in response to the emergency. Training and...

Single-Pilot Crew Resource Management

Single-pilot resource management (SRM) is the art of managing all onboard and outside resources available to a pilot before and during a flight to help ensure a safe and successful outcome. Incorporating SRM into GA pilot training is an important step forward in aviation safety. A structured...

Runway Safety

Runway incursions continue to occur at the rate of more than 1,200 per year — that averages more three a day! Because incursions have the potential to cause serious accidents, their prevention continues to be a focus of FAA and the FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam). Let’s have a look at some tips and...

Pilot Proficiency Training

A pilot can maintain and improve performance by gaining familiarity with and obtaining proficiency training in each of the precursors, or contributing factors, to loss of control accidents.

Maneuvering Flight

More than 25 percent of general aviation fatal accidents occur during the maneuvering phase of flight — turning, climbing, or descending close to the ground. The vast majority of these accidents involve buzzing attempts and stall/spin scenarios (half of which are while in the traffic pattern)....

Managing the Unexpected

Fatal general aviation accidents often result from inappropriate responses to unexpected events. Humans are subject to a “startle response” when they are faced with unexpected emergency situations and may delay action or initiate inappropriate action in response to the emergency. Training and...