Aviation Employees' Intentions to Report Safety Concerns

Abstract

Following investigation of the Air Adventures accident in New Zealand, it was found that, prior to the accident occurring, a number of people had held concerns about the pilot in charge, but had not communicated their concerns to those with authority to intervene. The regulatory body claimed that had they been informed of people's safety concerns prior to the accident occurring,they could have had an opportunity to do more so that an accident is averted. This study explored what aviation employees would do if they had safety concerns, or became aware of wrongdoing, in the context of aviation. The findings of a survey of 116 aviation businessessuggested that under-reporting of safety concerns and wrongdoing in aviation may be widespread. There was also evidence that the manner in which observers become aware of wrongdoing or safety concerns may affect their reporting intentions (e.g., do nothing vs. report to a manager), and that a participant's gender and position within their organisation (management vs. staff) may interact with their reporting intentions.