Sharing the Experience

What part does punishment play in air safety? How does the threat of punishment further the free exchange of information?

These two questions have been passing through my mind over recent times. The matter was brought to a head by recent reports in the daily press. These concerned a pilot who had been charged by the Federal authorities and subsequently fined in a Federal Court for breaches of the Air Navigation Act, resulting from a report that he had submitted. The report dealt with a minor mishap that had occurred whilst he was taxiing a light aircraft. In all probability, had the pilot not made that report, he would have suffered neither the social stigma nor the financial penalty. The only sufferer would have been air safety.

Air safety experts have long recognised the importance of a free exchange of information concerning accidents and incidents. Experience must be shared. When misfortune befalls one member of the aviation community, the fullest details of both cause and effect should be passed to other members to save them from falling into the same trap. That is how the system should work. What is going wrong? Let us take a look at a couple of examples. .

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