Paul
Paul
New entrant ground pilot
Skilling
Role
Pilot
Paul's Persona was developed to represent a junior commercial pilot who is in the initial stage of his flying career and who will need to be trained as a ground pilot. As a ground pilot, Paul will have to continuously monitor different aircraft at the same time, communicate with the single pilots on board and hand over to another ground pilot at the end of his shift. His training needs are expected to deal with the use of IT tools and automation related to his ground pilot role, including automation to take over an aircraft in the event of onboard pilot incapacitation. On the other hand, Paul's transversal training needs will include multi-tasking, time management, communication and independent decision making.
Information
Age: 26
Education/ Expertise: Aerospace Engineering degree from the University of Sheffield (UK) Completed his pilot training via the modular route Worked in a software company for a few years to self-fund his pilot training Location: London
Tasks
- Flight plan preparation with the Single Pilot
- Flight monitoring
- Routine and emergency checklists execution
- Remote interactions with aircraft systems
- Monitoring weather (and other obstacles) along the flight path
- Communication with the Single Pilot, cabin crew passengers, ground crew and ATC
Main challenges in the workplace
- Desk job, for the most part alone
- Long-haul flights continuous monitoring
- Remote communication with the single pilot onboard
- High number of displays which will rely a lot on the information which is available to the onboard pilot (e.g. PFD, ND, cockpit view, etc.)
- Supervision by a senior pilot (on the ground) in the event of an aircraft emergency
- Need of regular flying training in preparation for an eventual transition to a single pilot onboard role
Roles and responsibilities
- Safe and efficient assistance to the single pilot onboard (pilot monitoring duties)
- Onboard flight Controls take over in case of single pilot onboard incapacitation
- Multiple aircraft monitoring in parallel
- Hand over to other ground pilots to ensure smooth operations
- Multiple licenses and ratings holding and maintenance (e.g. ground licence and commercial pilot licence)
Skills competences and study pathway
Study Pathway
The skilling study pathway developed for Paul describes the formal training, knowledge, skills and competencies that a new entrant ground pilot needs to acquire.
Expected key behavioural skills and competences
Being a new entrant single pilot requires also a set of new and additional behavioural competences and skills to perform successfully in the context of single pilot's operations. Each competence below includes a short definition, the key behavioural markers and theoretical knowledge associated. The behavioural markers are examples of observable actions and skills that one might demonstrate with these competences.
Communication
Definition
The ability to demonstrate effective oral, non-verbal and written communications, in normal and non-normal situations.
Behavioural markers (being able to)
- Radiotelephony (RT) communications / RT phraseology (IFR and VFR)
- Datalink systems (Controller Pilot Data Link Communications - CPDLC, etc.)
- Types of communication (verbal, non-verbal, etc.)
- Effective communication techniques
- Crew Resource Management (CRM)
- Operational procedures
Knowledge (Knows/aware of / familiar with)
- Ensure that the recipient (on-board pilot, ATCO, other ground pilot, etc.) is ready and able to receive the information
- Select appropriately what, when, how and with whom to communicate
- Convey messages clearly, accurately and concisely
- Confirm that the recipient correctly understands important information
- Listen actively and demonstrate understanding when receiving information
- Ask relevant and effective questions
- Adhere to standard radiotelephone phraseology and procedures
- Accurately read and interpret required company and flight documentation
- Accurately read, interpret, construct and respond to data link messages in English
- Complete accurate reports as required by operating procedures
- Correctly interpret non-verbal communication
- Use eye contact, body movement and gestures that are consistent with and support verbal messages
- Perform all of the above for one or more aircraft with a single on-board pilot
Situational awareness
Definition
The ability to perceive and comprehend all of the relevant information available and anticipate what could happen that may affect the operation.
Knowledge (Knows/aware of / familiar with)
- Aviation psychology (human information processing, human error and reliability, situation awareness, safety awareness, etc.)
- Threat and error management
- Aircraft general knowledge (systems, instrumentation)
- Aircraft performance (climb performance, variables effecting aircraft performance in different phases of flight, etc.)
- Surveillance systems (for weather, traffic and terrain avoidance)
Behavioural markers (being able to)
- Identify and assess accurately the state of the aircraft and its systems
- Identify and assess accurately the vertical and lateral position of the aircraft and its anticipated flight path
- Identify and assess accurately the general environment (weather, traffic, terrain) as it may affect the operation
- Keep track of time and fuel
- Maintain awareness of the onboard pilot and his/her capacity to perform as expected
- Gather information from all sources at his/her disposal and share relevant information with the onboard pilot to ensure a shared mental model of the situation
- Anticipate accurately what could happen, plans and stays ahead of the situation
- Together with the onboard pilot, develop effective contingency plans based on potential threats e.g., pilot incapacitation
- Together with the onboard pilot, identify and manage threats to the safety of the aircraft and passengers
- Recognize and effectively respond to indications of reduced situational awareness
- Perform all of the above for one or more aircraft with a single onboard pilot
Workload management
Definition
The ability to manage available resources efficiently to prioritise and perform tasks in a timely manner under all circumstances.
Knowledge (Knows/aware of / familiar with)
- Aviation psychology (human overload and underload, fatigue and stress management, etc.
- Threat and error management
- Time management / planning
- Multi-tasking strategies
Behavioural markers (being able to)
- Maintain self-control in all situations
- Plan, prioritize and schedule tasks effectively
- Manage time efficiently when carrying out task
- Offer and accept assistance and ask for help early
- Review, monitor and cross-check actions conscientiously
- Verify that tasks are completed to the expected outcome
- Manage and recover from interruptions, distractions, variations and failures effectively
- Perform all of the above for one or more aircraft with a single on-board pilot
