Many flight instructors worry that focusing too heavily on areas like risk management, ADM, SRM, and situational awareness might take away from essential training that develops safe pilots. However, integrating these elements into flight training can greatly enhance the pilot’s decision-making abilities and overall safety.

1. Phases of Flight Training: Developing Safe Pilots

   Effective training involves developing both technical and decision-making skills in phases.

   1. First Phase: Master Traditional Maneuvers

      1. Focus on basic flying skills and building confidence.

      2. Emphasize stick-and-rudder skills.

      3. Build competence in aircraft handling.

   2. Second Phase: Introduce System Safety Principles

      1. Begin incorporating safety management into training.

      2. Identify hazards and manage risks.

      3. Utilize available resources for safe flight.

      4. Use scenarios to reinforce safety principles.

   3. Third Phase: Complex Scenarios

      1. Move towards handling multiple safety-of-flight issues.

      2. Start with simple scenarios and gradually increase complexity.

      3. Build the learner’s capacity to handle more workload.

2. Teaching Decision-Making Skills to Student Pilots

   Decision-making skills can be taught in three phases, gradually incorporating complex scenarios that require risk management and sound judgment.

   1. Phase One: Building Basic Skills

      1. Focus on fundamental stick-and-rudder maneuvers.

      2. Develop competencies in power management, airspeed management, aircraft configuration, and pattern placement.

      3. Use repetition and practice to build confidence and skill.

   2. Phase Two: Discussing Factors Affecting Operations

      1. Introduce considerations like runway surface conditions, no-flap landings, and rejected landings.

      2. Discuss challenges and necessary adjustments for conditions such as short strips, maximum gross weight, and high-density altitude.

      3. Conduct these discussions on the ground to maximize flight time efficiency.

   3. Phase Three: Integrating Complex Scenarios

      1. Combine hazards, risks, and conditions into more complex scenarios.

      2. Encourage students to consider how different factors interplay in real-time situations.

      3. Example: A cross-country flight where passengers’ illness forces a diversion, and the only available runway is short with inoperative flaps. Students must decide between landing at the available runway or finding another alternate.

3. Scenario-Based Training (SBT) for Decision-Making and Risk Management

   SBT helps students exercise good judgment and make sound decisions, integrating ADM and risk management into real flight scenarios.

   1. Effective Scenario Design:

      • Should engage all learning domains and require time-pressured decisions.

      • Promote situational awareness and encourage decision-making without promoting errors.

      • The scenario should not have a single "right" answer, allowing learners to make decisions within their skill level.

      • Present realistic conditions to challenge learners with planning, route selection, weather assessment, and emergency procedures.

   2. Instructor Role:

      • Act as a mentor, guiding learners through planning and decision-making.

      • Ensure safety by managing risky scenarios but allow learners to make choices and learn from the outcomes.