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Airlines Need to Take Pilot Stress Seriously, Psychotherapist Argues
September 25, 2000 The apparent actions of relief pilot Gamil el Batouti in the crash of EgyptAir Flight 990 points out the need for periodic testing of the psychological health of pilots, argues Canadian psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Cappon. In a recent article in Toronto's Globe and Mail newspaper, Cappon declared, "I believe that most of the fatal accidents we hear about are avoidable, and that the mental problems of some pilots may be more widespread than what has been reported." For this reason, he argued, "The public must insist on new legislation to enable medical authorities to detect early mental dysfunction in flying personnel and in air-traffic controllers." In the case of the Egyptian pilot, Dr. Cappon believes he was an "acute psychotic." In a telephone interview, Cappon explained that ample warning signs were present in the extensive documentation amassed since the Oct. 31 crash. The pilot was occasionally quarrelsome; his moods changed and, most telling, he was clearly involved in high-risk behavior, as evidenced by reports that he exposed himself to teenage girls (see ASW, Sept. 18). In the wake of the EgyptAir tragedy, Jim Hall, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, suggested in a Congressional hearing last April that it may be time, considering other events involving suicidal or mentally unstable pilots, to consider psychological profiling of pilots. The mere suggestion has been vehemently rejected by U.S. pilots as both (1) invasive of personal privacy and (2) ineffective. Cappon, who stresses his admiration for the professionalism and personal competence of the great majority of pilots, sees the need. He makes his case on three points: 1. The unique nature of air travel. Of the various modes of transportation, only two carry huge human cargoes at one time: ships and airliners. Big ships rarely cause human disaster unless they're driven into icebergs. But in air travel human error remains the biggest source of disaster, and an unstable pilot can pitch a perfectly stable airplane into a fatal dive. 2. Pilots' lives are full of stress. The most common personal stressor is chronic insomnia and the subsequent fatigue. Pilots' home lives are disrupted by the flying schedule. There are temptations in exotic places. As a consequence, Cappon notes, "Pilots tend to have multiple marriages with a lot of in-between stress." The "coping mechanisms," as it were, can take the form of alcoholism and drug use. 3. Psychological testing can identify at-risk pilots. Cappon disagrees with the view of some pilots that psychological screening would not catch problem pilots. "That's like saying x-rays won't identify a cancer," he said. The test he has in mind involves some 300 items of background information, plus 120 additional items of what he called the "foreground" aspects of a pilot's mental health. He believes the focus of the periodic checkup should be changed. Presently, that focus is on finding the absence of health, not the presence of physical fitness, let alone mental and social fitness. These vital signs of the "whole person," Cappon maintained, are too often left to "casual verbal inquiry by physicians." He believes the depth of psychiatric inquiry should equal the rigor of the physical examination. Preserving pilot privacy, Cappon believes, is secondary to the greater cause: the safety of the travelling public. Cappon, e-mail danielc@yorku.ca
From: AIR SAFETY WEEK |
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