Consequences of Human Intervention in Aviation
Human factors play a significant role in the occurrence of events that occur within an organization including accidents and investigations into such occurrences should factor in how human failure contributed. In an organizational setting, the management bears responsibility for ensuring that employees operate in a safe and secure environment. Concerning the accident, the airline is to blame for the incident that led to the loss of life despite the incident being instigated by one of the employees.
As part of the airline’s responsibility, the airline was required to ensure that there is adequate manpower to run the airline. Adequate staffing prevents issues such as overworking and further reduces mistakes brought about by fatigue. On the day of the incident, Ken had only slept for five hours as this was the only time left after his previous shift. The night shift was also overly busy and this kept ken too occupied to even take his assigned break. After the busy shift, Ken was requested to work overtime by the morning shift manager due to a shortage of employees. After four more hours overtime, Ken is directed to drive through the runway, despite not having a permit and this leads up to the accident. The errors made by the Sunshine GHA greatly contributed to the accident. The management failed to hire adequate employees to account for the shortages resulting from poor weather. This was despite evidence that the employees were suffering from symptoms related to fatigue and being overworked.
The accident that occurred is as a result of the human factors instigated by the stakeholders. Duties such as hiring employees and assigning job duties are overseen by the top management. Although there are supervisors assigned to handle employees, the problem arises from the top management as they determine the number of people to hire as well as the corporate culture that determines how activities are undertaken. The airline, sunshine GHA and other stakeholders can therefore identify the role that their mistakes and mistakes made by top management when determining the workforce should therefore be taken into account when determining the events that led to the accidents so as to prevent a repeat of the same.
One recommendation to remedy the situation would be for Sunshine GHA to hire more employees to help deal with the demands brought about by the seasonal weather. Since blocked roads make it difficult for employees to get to work, the organization could arrange with other stakeholders such as Flysmiles Hotels Ltd to house employees during periods where the conditions are too poor to travel. Having employees closer to the airline will ensure that staff stick to their schedules and not force others to work overtime.
Another solution would be for the air traffic control to train its top management on the importance of leading by example. On the morning of the incident, the night supervisor had already left for work while other employees like Ken were forced to do more overtime. The new supervisor asked ken to take on more overtime as he was not aware that the employee had already been overworked and was fatigued. Better leadership will ensure that management assign duties and breaks accordingly to reduce the chance of overworking employees.
Lastly, the management should strive to establish communication between its stakeholders and members of staff. Ken had the experience and knowledge needed to drive on the freeway but was yet to receive a permit from the RCP. This forced the supervisor to direct Ken to drive through and this led to the mix-up with the air traffic control. Better communication will ensure that there is a steady flow of work and an organizational culture that holds each party responsible for whatever incidents occur.
