Human Behaviour, Communication and Crew Resource Management
Domain 6 tests teamwork, communication, personality, leadership, assertiveness and CRM. The exam asks how behaviour affects safety and what phrase or action improves the team.
CRM essentials
- Communication must be closed-loop: sender states the message, receiver repeats and confirms.
- Assertiveness is not aggression: it is stating a concern clearly with evidence and a proposed action.
- Leadership includes followership: the pilot monitoring must monitor, challenge and support.
- Personality and culture affect behaviour but do not excuse unsafe actions.
- Fatigue, stress and conflict reduce communication quality and increase tunnelling.
Worked example
A captain continues an approach below minima while the first officer says, 'I'm not comfortable.' The captain does not respond. The first officer should use PACE: Probe ('What do you see?'), Alert ('We are below minima'), Challenge ('I think we should go around'), Emergency ('Go around now'). The original phrase was too vague and placed the decision burden back on the captain.
Traps
Mistaking silence for agreement; using aggression as assertiveness; assuming rank equals competence; ignoring transposition errors in readback; treating CRM as only 'being nice'.