The Role of the Crew on Board - Assignment Example

Critically examine the role of the crew on board and explain situations that needed more attention and that could have been addressed within the given constraints. Captain Haynes together with his crew was involved in plotting a route in the air of Sioux City municipal airport, where the plane was crash-landed after its hydraulic malfunctioned. All the crew in the cabin and the cockpit co-operated excellently, even though there was no much time to coordinate or communicate to them. Most encouraging was that the senior flight attendant, Janice T. Brown, offered a lot of assistance, which was very worthy considering her expansive experience. When the pilot alerted her to the flight deck for the first time, she was very quick to recognize that there was an emergency – she immediately embarked on emergency response activities, including preparation of the passengers for a crash-landing. After realizing there was an emergency, the crew was very quick to acknowledge that a lot of communication was not necessary, since this could have disrupted high level co-operation, which was highly needed at that moment (Boehm-Davis, Holt & Seamster, 2001). The crew members were also very good in communication, one of biggest factor that contributed to large number of survivors. The crew in the cockpit was very skillful in communicating with Sioux City approach control & control tower and the air traffic control in Minneapolis Centre. Immediately it was realized that the aircraft was headed for a serious danger, the crews within the cockpit build up. For example, Dudley Dvorak rushed to the radio and spent all the time talking with the aircraft’s SAM facility, which was comprised of a group of experts. The level of cooperation and expertise that the crew exercised in such an incident, which they had never practiced in their lives before, was particularly laudable. The crew called for advance emergency services, something that worked very well because by the time the aircraft land-crashed, all the emergency service providers including firefighters, and hospitals were already prepared (Boehm-Davis, Holt & Seamster, 2001). Describe at least three factors that affected the resolution of the problem. Luck Although being involved in such a flick accident can be understood to be a bad lack, the fact that two thirds of the passengers and crew onboard survived is a good luck. For example, the fact that the crew was able to get the aircraft to Sioux City with a failed engine was nothing but a sheer luck. When they touched on the ground, the aircraft had no steering, no brakes and no nose wheel or tail. The elevators, too, were out of control. Running a plane without all these parts and having some survivors following the crash-landing was a tremendous piece of lack. Another piece of lack was the fact that the plane experienced mechanical problems when it went over the relative flatlands over Iowa. These mean that, even if they had missed the airport, they could have probably landed on some fair level ground and still manage to get some survival. The weather was also an amazing piece of luck. It could have been extremely hard to fly the F-15 under any kind of turbulence, but fortunately, during the time of the crash the skies were clear and the visibility was excellent. Lastly, the fact that this fateful disaster occurred during the daytime was an amazing luck because the crew was able to control the aircraft well considering that they could observe the ground properly. Preparation Preparation was extremely important for such a disaster. The emergency response crews in Sioux City had a disaster response simulation once every three years, which prepared them for any disaster. For example, during 1987, the organizers pretended that an aircraft that did not serve the city had crashed on its runways. After running the drill, areas of improvements were detected and changes made accordingly. Ideally, the preparation by Sioux Gateway Airport laid down a plan, which was very helpful for the crew of Flight 232. The repeated training that was conducted every year prepared the disaster response team how to notify the passengers how to get ready for a disaster landing. In essence, the team was able to do what it did because it had previously had some practice (McKinney et al., 2005). Communication Communication was one of the biggest factors towards the success of this rescue operation. The crew in the cockpit started off the communication that was very skillful in alerting Sioux City approach control and control tower and the traffic control in Minneapolis Centre. As the aircraft’s situation became more dangerous, the communication within the cockpit was increasing accordingly. When the aircraft crews run out of ideas, the crew on the ground was very quick in getting on the radio to offer their advice through SAM facility, which was comprised of a group of experts. The communication that was coordinated through SAM was very important as it helped the Chicago dispatch centre to locate them and what they intended to do. Also, through SAM, their personnel in the Chicago flight centre were able to follow up what was going on, and, hence they dispatched their personnel to Sioux City and sent others in hospitals, just on time (McKinney et al., 2005). What is the main goal of the character you are analyzing? Support your response. Al Haynes - the captain Captain Al Haynes was supposed to help Bill in shutting down the engine, a task that was extremely difficult. Although he was not sure of what to do, he was quick to take control whenever they tried something which failed to work. In summary, the role of AlHaynes was to try all the means to get the people from point A to point B safely (McKinney et al., 2005). Senior flight attendant, Jan Brown-Lohr Jan Brown was a flight attendant who was actively involved in comforting the emotions of the frightened passengers so they do not become so terrified at the expense of taking safety measures. Just before the plane hurled across Sioux City runway, she advised the parents how to protect their small children to increase their survival rate. She was also in charge of explaining the emergency procedures to the passengers. In summary, her goal to encourage the passengers to undertake safety measures to increase their survival rate. How effective or ineffective was the individual in his/her attempt to meet the goals? Why? Al Haynes - the captain When it was learned that all the plane’s hydraulics had failed, AlHaynes attempted to think what should be done to keep the plane on air, and in fact he was successful after experimenting several things, together with his team . In the process, AlHaynes together with his team established that alternating the thrust could help to control the altitude and manipulation of throttles could prevent the aircraft from rolling over, which again they tried and they were somewhat successful. When things got out of hand and a pilot called Denny Fitch offered to help by taking control over the throttle, Bill and AlHaynes had to fly by the control wheels, despite doubting whether this was doing any good. When Denny was controlling the throttle, AlHaynes and Bill were guiding him closely, hence managing to crash-land the plane with an amazingly high survival rate (Davis, Driskell, & Salas, 1991). Senior flight attendant, Jan Brown-Lohr Jan Brown was doing a very challenging job, which she could not have succeeded if it were not for her courage and commitment. Despite the panic mood that every passenger was undergoing, she managed to explain the safety procedures to them, especially concerning how they should protect their children. Those who followed her advice had themselves or their children survive. What specific personal negotiation and leadership skills did he or she demonstrate throughout the crisis? Al Haynes - the captain One of the most outstanding character of AlHaynes, that helped him achieved his goals, was his ability to work cohesively in a team. Despite the confusion and panic that is expected in such a situation, AlHaynes remained cool and cooperated well with his copilot, the ground crew and anybody else that was involved in the procedure. AlHaynes was also very patient, no wonder he did not give up on trying different options even after learning that he aircraft had lost all its hydraulics. Senior flight attendant, Jan Brown-Lohr Senior Jan Brown-Lohr was amazingly an audacious and caring lady, and that is why she managed to explain the emergency procedures to frightened mothers, without being weighed down by the fact that she was also going to be involved in the disaster. Her caring heart was also witnessed when she tried to prevent a mother from going back to get her son who perished in the burning aircraft (Davis, Driskell, & Salas, 1991). How well does the individual know himself or herself, and how effectively or ineffectively did he or she adapt to the circumstances and personalities involved on board Flight 232? Captain Al Haynes was persuaded that his role during such a situation was to seek all means to ensure that he saved the lives of the crew and the passengers. Having acknowledged his role, Haynes could not leave any stones unturned - he exhausted all the ideas he had and listened to the advice from who offered to help. Although it had dawned on everybody that he plane was headed for a deadly disaster, he did not lose his composure but rather adapted to the situation and continued to try very other options. Senior Jan Brown-Lohr knew that her role was to help the passengers and their children survive the disaster, and she remained steadfast to achieving her goals. Even the high level of panic did not deter her from helping the passenger to prepare for an emergency. She adapted very fast to the frantic situation of an imminent disaster and, hence she was able to discharge her duties comfortably (Davis, Driskell, & Salas, 1991). References Boehm-Davis, D., Holt, R., & Seamster T. (2001). Airline resource management programs. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. Davis, R.,Driskell, J. E., & Salas, R. (1991). Group decision making under stress. Journal of Applied Psychology, 76, 473-478. McKinney,Earl H.,,Jr, Barker, J. R., Davis, K. J., & Smith, D. (2005). HOW SWIFT STARTING ACTION TEAMS GET OFF THE GROUND: What united flight 232 and airline flight crews can tell us about team communication. Management Communication Quarterly : McQ, 19(2), 198-237. Appendices Al Haynes - the captain Title: Captain Work type: motivational speaker Position in job: Retired DC-10 captain Education: graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School (Dallas, Texas) in 1948, and then attended Texas A&M University, Training: Subsequently he entered Navy flight training and was commissioned a Marine Corps aviator. In 1956 Haynes completed his military service and joined United Airlines, eventually climbing up the airlines pilots ranks until he became a captain. Personality: humorous, enthusiastic, Senior flight attendant, Jan Brown-Lohr Title: Captain Work type: cabin crew Position in job: Senior flight attendant, Education: aviation, flight attendant, emergency response Training: flight attendant Personality: caring, courageous Read More