MINIMISING PILOT ERROR BY DESIGN: ARE TEST PILOTS DOING A GOOD ENOUGH JOB?

It has been well documented that about 70% of commercial aircraft accidents in the last 15 years were related to human error. The cockpit of an airliner is designed for the specific task of providing a safe and efficient interface with the operators, usually 2 pilots. Despite similar tasks performed by all crews, designs vary greatly among manufacturers and few standards exist for interface methods. Design decisions in commercial projects have always been made based on subjective statements of test pilots, and test pilots rely on the certification regulations, company design philosophy, and prior experience. The design is scrutinized in reviews, flight tests, and certification tests, and is formally approved before it is allowed to enter service. However, most accidents of late have occurred despite this process, which begs the question of whether test pilots have been doing a good enough job in contributing to cockpit design. This paper explores this question, describing the present process of approval used by many manufacturers, finds the deficiencies in this method, and focuses on the role of test pilots.