9.4 Flashcards
What factors can affect an aircraft maintenance engineers ability to perform their job?
Fitness/ health/ stress/ time pressures/ workload/ fatigue plus affects of ( drugs, alcohol and medication).
What does ICAO require in terms of fitness for maintenance engineers?
Requires engineers to be a certain age , knowledge, experience, and medial fitness.
What are the 2 main types of stress?
Acute stress and chronic stress.
What type of stressors can lead to stress?
Physical/ psychological/ reactive
What are common signs of stress?
Psychological factors/ health effects/ behavioural symptoms/ cognitive/ subject effects.
How can stress manifest in an individuals behaviour?
Signs can include irritability/ forgetfulness/ increased absenteeism/ mistakes.
How can domestic stress affect aircraft maintenance engineers?
Domestic stress can impair concentration and task performance during work, stemming from major life changes like marriage, bereavement, or divorce.
What are the main two strategies for responding to stress?
Defence strategies and coping strategies.
What are examples of defence strategies?
Taking medication, using alcohol, denying the problem, or blaming others.
Examples of defence strategies?
Taking medication, using alcohol, denying the problem, or blaming others.
What are examples of coping strategies?
Delegating workload, prioritising tasks, actively addressing the problem.
Why is it sometimes difficult to cope with stress?
Some stressors may be outside an individuals control, making resolution challenging.
Types of time pressure?
Actual, perceived, self-imposed, contractual, Operational.
What is Actual pressure?
Deadlines set by external sources like management.
What is perceived pressure?
Feeling urgency without defined deadlines.
What is Self-imposed pressure?
Personal deadlines set by the individual.
Example of excessive time pressure?
Increased mistakes leading to aircraft incidents.
What happened in the BAC 1-11 accident?
Incorrect windscreen bolt installation due to perceived time pressure.
What is a key management strategy for time pressure?
Shield engineers from commercial pressures.
How to prioritise tasks effectively?
Focus on critical tasks and realistic time assessment.
Why is personnel availability important?
To account for potential absences and ensure task completion.
What is ‘overload’?
Overload occurs at very high levels of workload, leading to performance deterioration and increased errors.
What causes overload?
Sudden/gradual workload, insufficient personnel, or excessive demands on mental and physical resources.
What is under-load?
Occurs when at low levels of workload, leading to boredom, reduced performance and increased errors.
Why is optimal arousal important for performance?
Is ensures that engineers are neither overwhelmed nor bored, maximising their efficiency and accuracy.
I does effective workload management involve?
Careful planning of tasks, resources, and training to match employees capabilities with job demands.
What is the purpose of sleep?
Sleep is a vital physiological function necessary for restoring the mind and body.
How much sleep do human generally need?
8 hours.
What is a cumulative sleep deficit?
A loss of sleep that builds up over time, requiring additional hours to recover.
What is circadian rhythms?
Biological processes that follow a roughly 24-hour cycle, regulating sleep wakefulness and other physiological functions.
What influences circadian rhythms?
External environment factors, particularly light.
What is the role of the hypothalamus in circadian rhythms?
It acts as the central clock regulating psychological and behavioural functions.
What can disrupt circadian rhythms?
Factors like shift work or crossing multiple time zones
What are the symptoms of fatigue?
Decreased alertness, poor performance, mood changes and physical exhaustion.
When did the Chernobyl disaster occur?
April 26, 1986
What contributed to the disaster?
Reactor design flaws and failure to comply with safety checklists. Lack of sleep between workers.
When did American Airlines flight 1420 crash?
July 1, 1999
What caused the crash?
Fatigue and bad weather.
What are two types of fatigue?
Physiological fatigue and subjective fatigue.
What is time since awaking?
The number of hours a person has been awake, critical in fatigue-related accidents.
What is the difference between substance use and substance abuse?
Substance use is the consumption of psychoactive substances in moderation, while substance abuse involves regular use that leads to problems in life.
What is the legal blood alcohol limit for aircraft engineers in the uk?
80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood; aircrew have a stricter limit of 20mg/100ml.
How does alcohol affect the central nervous system?
It were as a depressant dulling the senses and increasing the reaction times leading to impaired judgment.
