Ergonomics and Crisis Intervention in Aviation Accident Investigation

Abstract

Since 2004 we have been analyzing and understanding aviation accident investigator's work, starting from France at the BEAD-air board, and following with JIAAC, in Argentina during the last two years. The problems they face having to investigate violation of rules was the first object of our research. The context of accident investigation is also difficult to understand systemic causality. It is prescribed and also sometimes impossible to achieve, so this requirement of the task impacts on their reliability and health through an assessment process based on the way they write the reports which doesn't really reflect their real analysis. Nowadays we are starting a new Project with JIAAC which combines an ergonomic approach with a psychological approach to be able to prevent the consequences of their stress during contexts that are exposing them to critical event such as death, to the families suffering or to media pressure. This produces a level of stress added to all the organizational and judicial aspects that interfere with their work. Our goal as a team is to prevent as much as possible these factors to intervene, and when it is not possible to prevent them, we have combined our intervention with the necessary psychological assistance to avoid further PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) symptoms. This work is an innovation in our aviation world, and we would be delighted to share our advances during 2018 IEA congress.

GIPSIA: Grupo interdisciplinario e internacional para la promoción de la salud de los investigadores de accidentes aéreos.