ORO.FC.115 Crew resource management (CRM) training

CRM TRAINING — MULTI-PILOT OPERATIONS

(a)General

(1)Training environment CRM training should be conducted in the non-operational environment (classroom and computer-based) and in the operational environment (flight simulation training device (FSTD) including other training solutions described in CS-FSTD when available and aircraft. Tools such as group discussions, team task analysis, team task simulation and feedback should be used.

(2)Classroom training Whenever possible, classroom training should be conducted in a group session away from the pressures of the usual working environment, so that the opportunity is provided for flight crew members to interact and communicate in an environment conducive to learning.

(3)Computer-based training (CBT) Computer-based training should not be conducted as a stand-alone training method but may be conducted as a complementary training method. Complementary training method in the context of EBT: advanced CBT following the aviation blended learning environment, such as virtual reality, chatbots, interactive scenario trainers, etc. may serve as the principal method to deliver training in the non-operational environment. In such case, the classroom training may be the complementary method.

(4)Flight simulation training devices (FSTDs)

(i)Whenever practicable, parts of the CRM training should be conducted in FSTDs that reproduce a realistic operational environment and permit interaction. This includes but is not limited to line-oriented flight training (LOFT) scenarios.

(ii)If the operator proficiency check is conducted in a FSTD, it should include a lineoriented flight during which a complementary CRM assessment should take place, in conditions that reproduce a realistic operational environment.

(5)Integration into flight crew training CRM principles should be integrated into relevant parts of flight crew training and operations including checklists, briefings, abnormal and emergency procedures.

(6)Combined CRM training for flight crew, cabin crew and technical crew

(i)Operators should provide combined training for flight crew, cabin crew and technical crew during recurrent CRM training.

(ii)The combined training should address at least:

(A)effective communication, coordination of tasks and functions of flight crew, cabin crew and technical crew; and

(B)mixed multinational and cross-cultural flight crew, cabin crew and technical crew, and their interaction, if applicable.

(iii)The combined training should be expanded to include medical passengers, if applicable to the operation.

(iv)Combined CRM training should be conducted by flight crew CRM trainer or cabin crew CRM trainer.

(v)There should be an effective liaison between flight crew, cabin crew and technical crew training departments. Provision should be made for transfer of relevant knowledge and skills between flight crew, cabin crew and technical crew CRM trainers.

(7)Management system CRM training should address hazards and risks identified by the operator’s management system described in ORO.GEN.200.

(8)Competency-based CRM training

(i)Whenever practicable, the compliance-based approach concerning CRM training may be substituted by a competency-based approach such as evidence-based training. In this context, CRM training should be characterised by a performance orientation, with emphasis on standards of performance and their measurement, and the development of training to the specified performance standards.

(ii)CRM training should be an essential element of the alternative training and qualification programme (ATQP) described in ORO.FC.A.245, when the operator applies ATQP.

(9)Contracted CRM training If the operator chooses not to establish its own CRM training, another operator, a third party or a training organisation may be contracted to provide the training in accordance with ORO.GEN.205. In case of contracted CRM training, the operator should ensure that the content of the course covers the specific culture, the type of operations and the associated procedures of the operator. When crew members from different operators attend the same course, the CRM training should be specific to the relevant flight operations and to the trainees concerned.

(b)Initial operator’s CRM training

(1)The flight crew member should complete the initial operator’s CRM training once. When the type of operation of a new operator is not different, the new operator should not be required to provide the initial operator’s CRM training to this flight crew member a second time.

(2)The initial training should cover all elements specified in Table 1 of (g).

(c)Operator conversion course — CRM training When the flight crew member undertakes a conversion course with a change of aircraft type or when joining an operator, elements of CRM training should be integrated into all appropriate phases of the operator’s conversion course, as specified in Table 1 of (g).

(d)Annual recurrent CRM training

(1)Annual recurrent CRM training should be provided in such a way that all CRM training elements specified for the annual recurrent training in Table 1 of (g) are covered over a period not exceeding 3 years.

(2)Operators should update their CRM recurrent training programme over a period not exceeding 3 years. The revision of the programme should take into account information from the operator’s management system including the results of the CRM assessment.

(e)Command course — CRM training The operator should ensure that elements of CRM training are integrated into the command course, as specified in Table 1 of (g).

(f)Training elements The CRM training elements to be covered are specified in Table 1 of (g). The operator should ensure that the following aspects are addressed:

(1)Automation and philosophy on the use of automation

(i)The CRM training should include training in the use and knowledge of automation, and in the recognition of systems and human limitations associated with the use of automation. The operator should, therefore, ensure that the flight crew member receives training on:

(A)the application of the operations policy concerning the use of automation as stated in the operations manual; and

(B)system and human limitations associated with the use of automation, giving special attention to issues of mode awareness, automation surprises and over-reliance including false sense of security and complacency.

(ii)The objective of this training should be to provide appropriate knowledge, skills and attitudes for managing and operating automated systems. Special attention should be given to how automation increases the need for crews to have a common understanding of the way in which the system performs, and any features of automation that make this understanding difficult.

(iii)If conducted in an FSTD, the training should include automation surprises of different origin (system- and pilot-induced).

(2)Monitoring and intervention Flight crew should be trained in CRM-related aspects of operation monitoring before, during and after flight, together with any associated priorities. This CRM training should include guidance to the pilot monitoring on when it would be appropriate to intervene, if felt necessary, and how this should be done in a timely manner. Reference should be made to the operator procedures for structured intervention as specified in the operations manual.

(3)Resilience development CRM training should address the main aspects of resilience development. The training should cover:

(i)Mental flexibility Flight crew should be trained to:

(A)understand that mental flexibility is necessary to recognise critical changes;

(B)reflect on their judgement and adjust it to the unique situation;

(C)avoid fixed prejudices and over-reliance on standard solutions; and

(D)remain open to changing assumptions and perceptions.

(ii)Performance adaptation Flight crew should be trained to:

(A)mitigate frozen behaviours, overreactions and inappropriate hesitation; and

(B)adjust actions to current conditions.

(4)Surprise and startle effect CRM training should address unexpected, unusual and stressful situations. The training should cover:

(i)surprises and startle effects; and

(ii)management of abnormal and emergency situations, including:

(A)the development and maintenance of the capacity to manage crew resources;

(B)the acquisition and maintenance of adequate automatic behavioural responses; and

(C)recognising the loss and re-building situation awareness and control.

(5)Cultural differences CRM training should cover cultural differences of multinational and cross-cultural crews. This includes recognising that:

(i)different cultures may have different communication specifics, ways of understanding and approaches to the same situation or problem;

(ii)difficulties may arise when crew members with different mother tongue communicate in a common language which is not their mother tongue; and

(iii)cultural differences may lead to different methods for identifying a situation and solving a problem.

(6)Operator’s safety culture and company culture CRM training should cover the operator’s safety culture, its company culture, the type of operations and the associated procedures of the operator. This should include areas of operations that may lead to particular difficulties or involve unusual hazards.

(7)Case studies

(i)CRM training should cover aircraft type-specific case studies, based on the information available within the operator’s management system, including:

(A)accident and serious incident reviews to analyse and identify any associated non-technical causal and contributory factors, and instances or examples of lack of CRM; and

(B)analysis of occurrences that were well managed.

(ii)If relevant aircraft type-specific or operator-specific case studies are not available, the operator should consider other case studies relevant to the scale and scope of its operations.

(g)CRM training syllabus Table 1 below specifies which CRM training elements should be covered in each type of training. The levels of training in Table 1 can be described as follows:

(1)‘Required’ means training that should be instructional or interactive in style to meet the objectives specified in the CRM training programme or to refresh and strengthen knowledge gained in a previous training.

(2)‘In-depth’ means training that should be instructional or interactive in style taking full advantage of group discussions, team task analysis, team task simulation, etc., for the acquisition or consolidation of knowledge, skills and attitudes. The CRM training elements should be tailored to the specific needs of the training phase being undertaken.

Table 1: Flight crew CRM training

(h)Assessment of CRM skills

(1)Assessment of CRM skills is the process of observing, recording, interpreting and debriefing crews and crew member’s performance using an accepted methodology in the context of the overall performance.

(2)The flight crew member’s CRM skills should be assessed in the operational environment, but not during CRM training in the non-operational environment. Nevertheless, during training in the non-operational environment, feedback from the flight crew CRM trainer or from trainees on individual and crew performance may be given to the crew members concerned.

(3)The assessment of CRM skills should:

(i)include debriefing the crew and the individual crew member;

(ii)serve to identify additional training, where needed, for the crew or the individual crew member; and

(iii)be used to improve the CRM training system by evaluating de-identified summaries of all CRM assessments.

(4)Prior to the introduction of CRM skills assessment, a detailed description of the CRM methodology, including the required CRM standards and the terminology used for the assessment, should be published in the operations manual.

(5)Methodology of CRM skills assessment The assessment should be based on the following principles:

(i)only observable behaviours are assessed;

(ii)the assessment should positively reflect any CRM skills that result in enhanced safety; and

(iii)assessments should include behaviour that results in an unacceptable reduction in safety margin.

(6)Operators should establish procedures, including additional training, to be applied in the event that flight crew members do not achieve or maintain the required CRM standards.

CRM TRAINING — SINGLE-PILOT OPERATIONS

(a)For single-pilot helicopter operations with technical crew or single-pilot VEMS operations with technical crew, AMC1 ORO.FC.115 should be applied.

(b)For single-pilot operations other than those specified in (a), AMC1 ORO.FC.115 should be applied with the following differences:

(1)Relevant training Training should cover the relevant CRM training, i.e. initial operator’s training, the operator conversion course and recurrent training.

(2)Relevant training elements CRM training should focus on the elements specified in Table 1 of (g) of AMC1 ORO.FC.115 which are relevant to single-pilot operations. Therefore, single-pilot CRM training should include, among others:

(i)situation awareness;

(ii)workload management;

(iii)decision-making;

(iv)resilience development;

(v)surprise and startle effect; and

(vi)effective communication and coordination with other operational personnel and ground services.

(3)Virtual classroom training Notwithstanding (a)(2) of AMC1 ORO.FC.115, classroom training may take place remotely, using a videoconferencing tool. The tool should permit real-time interaction between the trainees and the trainer, including speech and elements of body language. It should also be capable of transmitting any document to the trainee that the trainer wishes to present. The CRM trainer should establish the list of trainees in advance. Their numbers should be limited to 6 to ensure a sufficient level of interaction during the training session.

(4)Operation with ELA2 aircraft. Notwithstanding (1) and (2), for operations with ELA2 aircraft the relevant CRM training and its duration should be determined by the operator, based on the aircraft type and the complexity of the operation.

GENERAL

(a)CRM is the effective utilisation of all available resources (e.g. crew members, aircraft systems, supporting facilities and persons) to achieve safe and efficient operation.

(b)The objective of CRM is to enhance the communication and management skills of the flight crew member concerned. Emphasis is placed on the non-technical knowledge, skills and attitudes of flight crew performance.

TRAINING ENVIRONMENT, TRAINERS AND INSTRUCTORS

(a)Flight crew CRM training can be separated as follows:

(1)training in the non-operational environment:

(i)classroom; and

(ii)computer-based;

(2)training in the operational environment:

(i)flight simulation training device (FSTD); and

(ii)aircraft.

(b)In general, CRM training is provided as follows:

(1)classroom training by a flight crew CRM trainer;

(2)training in the operational environment by an instructor holding a certificate in accordance with Commission Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011;

(3)computer-based training as a self-study training method. If needed, directions concerning CRM-related issues are provided by a flight crew CRM trainer or by an instructor holding a certificate in accordance with Commission Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011.

MINIMUM TRAINING TIMES

(a)The following minimum training times are appropriate:

(1)multi-pilot operations:

(i)combined CRM training: 6 training hours over a period of 3 years, or, for EBT operators, a minimum of 3 training hours within 3 years; and

(ii)initial operator’s CRM training: 18 training hours with a minimum of 12 training hours in classroom training;

(2)initial operator’s CRM training for single-pilot operations: 6 training hours; and

(3)flight crew CRM trainer:

(i)basic training:

(A)18 training hours for trainees holding an instructor certificate for complex motor-powered aircraft, as specified in Commission Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011, which includes 25-hour training in teaching and learning; or

(B)30 training hours for trainees who do not hold an instructor certificate as specified in (A); and

(ii)refresher training: 6 training hours.

(b)‘Training hours’ means actual training time excluding breaks and assessment.

DESIGN, IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION OF CRM TRAINING The checklist in Table 1 provides guidance on the design, implementation and evaluation of CRM training, and on their incorporation into the operator’s safety culture. Elements of the operator’s management systems and the competency-based approach are incorporated in the checklist.

Table 1 — Checklist for design, implementation, evaluation and incorporation of CRM training

RESILIENCE DEVELOPMENT

(a)The main aspects of resilience development can be described as the ability to:

(1)learn (‘knowing what has happened’);

(2)monitor (‘knowing what to look for’);

(3)anticipate (‘finding out and knowing what to expect’); and

(4)respond (‘knowing what to do and being capable of doing it’).

(b)Operational safety is a continuous process of evaluation of and adjustment to existing and future conditions. In this context, and following the description in (a), resilience development involves an ongoing and adaptable process including situation assessment, self-review, decision and action. Training in resilience development enables crew members to draw the right conclusions from both positive and negative experiences. Based on those experiences, crew members are better prepared to maintain or create safety margins by adapting to dynamic complex situations.

(c)The training topics in (f)(3) of AMC1 ORO.FC.115 are to be understood as follows:

(1)Mental flexibility

(i)The phrase ‘understand that mental flexibility is necessary to recognise critical changes’ means that crew members are prepared to respond to situations for which there is no set procedure.

(ii)The phrase ‘reflect on their judgement and adjust it to the unique situation’ means that crew members learn to review their judgement based on the unique characteristics of the given circumstances.

(iii)The phrase ‘avoid fixed prejudices and over-reliance on standard solutions’ means that crew members learn to update solutions and standard response sets, which have been formed on prior knowledge.

(iv)The phrase ‘remain open to changing assumptions and perceptions’ means that crew members constantly monitor the situation, and are prepared to adjust their understanding of the evolving conditions.

(2)Performance adaptation

(i)The phrase ‘mitigate frozen behaviours, overreactions and inappropriate hesitation’ means that crew members correct improper actions with a balanced response.

(ii)The phrase ‘adjust actions to current conditions’ means that crew members’ responses are in accordance with the actual situation.

NON-TECHNICAL SKILLS ASSESSMENT

(a)NOTECHS (non-technical skills) is a validated method for assessing flight crew CRM skills. The NOTECHS framework consists of four main categories:

(1)Cooperation: Cooperation is the ability to work effectively in a crew.

(2)Leadership and managerial skills: Effective leadership and managerial skills help to achieve joint task completion within a motivated, fully functioning team through coordination and persuasiveness.

(3)Situation awareness: Situation awareness relates to one’s ability to accurately perceive what is in the flight crew compartment and outside the aircraft. It is also one’s ability to comprehend the meaning of different elements in the environment and the projection of their status in the near future.

(4)Decision-making: Decision-making is the process of reaching a judgement or choosing an option.

(b)Each of the four categories is subdivided into elements and behavioural markers. The elements are specified in Table 1 with examples of behavioural markers (effective behaviour). The behavioural markers are assessed by a rating scale to be established by the operator.

Table 1 — Categories, elements and behavioural markers of NOTECHS

FLIGHT CREW CRM TRAINER ASSESSMENT

(a)For assessing flight crew CRM trainers, the operator may nominate experienced flight crew CRM trainers who have demonstrated continued compliance with the provisions for a flight crew CRM trainer and capability in that role for at least 3 years.

(b)An operator that does not have the resources to conduct the assessment may employ a contractor. The standard as regards the assessment is confirmed on a 3-year basis by the operator.

(c)The checklist in Table 1 provides guidance on the assessment of a flight crew CRM trainer. If a flight crew CRM trainer is competent in his/her role, the response to the questions in Table 1 should be ‘yes’. When answering the questions in Table 1, justifications and examples related to the responses given should be provided.

Table 1 — Flight crew CRM trainer assessment checklist

VIRTUAL CLASSROOM TRAINING — SINGLE-PILOT OPERATIONS

(a)A successful virtual classroom training relies on the ability of the trainer to make best use of the associated technologies in the context of CRM training. The flight crew CRM trainer may need to receive appropriate training covering the following:

(1)learning style;

(2)teaching method associated with virtual classroom instruction, such as videoconferencing, and a familiarisation with the virtual classroom instruction system in use, including management of time, training media and equipment and tools.

(b)The assessment of CRM skills may be used by the operator to improve the CRM training system by evaluating de-identified summaries of all CRM assessments.

(c)The requirement of ORO.GEN.140 for the operator to grant access to the competent authority also applies to the virtual classroom training.

(d)More information on virtual classroom training is provided in the EASA Guidance for allowing virtual classroom instruction and distance learning.