Ethics in the Aviation Industry
Work usually comes with some stressful situations. There are multiple times we are faced with adversity that can challenge our ethical point of view just to complete the task at hand. That is sometimes the case in the Aviation world and the Army. Army aviation is full of strict rules and guidelines that must be followed whether it deals with the maintenance of the aircrafts or the pilots themselves. Unfortunately, Mission First is always the motto, no matter what you do in the Army.
Mission First is sometimes a challenge to the Ethics in Army aviation. The demand for flight hours and missions seem to never cease but there are significant rules and regulations that must be met for the pilot and the aircraft. In regards to maintenance, there are multiple checks and balances that need to be complete in order to release an aircraft for flight. Additionally, aircrafts are mandated to fly a certain number of hours a month. If that aircraft has been down for too long, the mechanics sometimes feel forced to just put a band-aid on the problem to meet the monthly requirements. Fortunately, we make sure that does not happen with thorough inspections.
Pilots themselves have multiple stipulations that need to be followed in order to fly. They're enforced to have a flight plan made out 24 hours prior to departure, they also have a supplement restriction list they must adhere to while on flight status and they have mandated rest periods that must be followed in order to fly an aircraft. This is all put into affect to mitigate room for error during flights because one mistake can cost someone their life. This is where ethics comes into play. Following all rules and guidelines, and morally doing what is right for the sake of everyone's livelihood is very important. If the pilot is forced to take a restricted supplement or comes into work 2 hours early and is supposed to fly that day, then owning up to that mistake and not flying is the ethical thing to follow.
In conclusion, ethics is very important in the aviation industry. There are multiple checks and balances put into play to ensure the safety for not only yourself, but for others as well. Taking that restricted supplement when the pilot was not supposed to could be the reason they make a mistake on the next flight. Additionally, the maintenance on an aircraft is also very important. At the end of the day, a life is not worth drinking a monster before a flight.
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I have seen numerous units do the bandaid trick to get jets in the air. I have also seen units that take the appropriate time to effect necessary repairs and refuse to let a jet fly unless a repair is final. In the unit that provided the time to repair jets by thinking quality over quantity, we eventually got to a point where the quantity was not an issue. I had to sit down with my group commander at one point and explain to him at length why the way our unit focused on quality instead of quantity was the correct approach to flying aircraft. He came back to me after several months and thanked us for changing his mind on how an organization should be run. Additionally, multiple pilots commented often, "we like flying the jets in this unit. The systems actually work like they are supposed to!" This is not something I take credit for by any means. It is just a testament to how performing quality maintenance and fixing things is usually a better method of ensuring pilots meet their flying requirements. Not only will the fly, they will be ensured effective training missions!
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