Passenger Address for non-normals

[Thunderbug]

Got a command coming up and a bit of self analysis has shown that I could improve my PAs given to passengers when things are going wrong.
Having an engineering background, I tend to tell it like it is, but this is likely to give most of my pax an attack of the vapors and a get myself a center page spread in the Daily Mail......
Any hints, advice, techniques or suggestions?
T'bug :ok:

[Max Angle]

The problem is how honest to be, there no doubt that you sometimes have to a little economical with the truth but as a trainer said to me years ago you can't say that it's only a minor problem and no big deal and then in the next breath tell them you a turning around and landing back or diverting or have the cabin start an evacuation briefing. Just keep it simple, don't lie and give them a few hard facts. If your PA is so woolly that they don't know what’s going on by the time you have finished you might as well not bother.

The other big thing to think about is what the cabin crew's procedures are in various situations, you obviously need to talk to the No. 1 first but make sure what you say to the passenger’s ties in with what you told the crew. You don't want to brief the cabin crew that it's going to be a normal landing and then tell the passengers to listen carefully the cabin crew's instructions because there aren't going to be any. On the other hand if you are expecting to have to evacuate the cabin crew are going to do a long briefing to the pax. so it's not a bad idea to tell the pax. that it's coming up and that an evacuation is likely.

I reckon that dealing effectively with the communications with crew and passengers in non-normal situations is one of the biggest challenges facing a new captain on a command course, it is not as easy as it appears. Have a good long think about what you are going to want to do with the cabin in various situations and how to communicate this to the crew and pax. What circumstances might you want to plan for an evacuation, are you expecting a normal or emergency landing etc. How much time do the crew have to get ready?

I would also advise to have a good look at the cabin crew manual and read up on how they are expected to react to various situations and how they go about briefing the pax. and conducting an evacuation etc. I suspect there will a lot of stuff in there that you don't know.

Good luck.

[flufdriver]

Yes, I agree that PA communication from the flight deck (not just during non-normals) is something that needs attention in many airlines.

To a new Captain I would give the following guidance: when dealing with a problematic situation, make certain you speak with the senior cabin crew first and give it to them as it is, secondly, think about the category of problem you're dealing with and then put that in "politically correct" parlance, this will cover your a** in case things get worse.

As an example, think about the emergency brief: "If the cabin presssure should change" ,meaning; if the aircraft should loose pressurization etc.

Much will depend on your tone and inflection, if you sound calm and competent the passengers will be more relaxed and have confidence in the crew's ability to deal with any problems.

[Juud]

T'bug, what an excellent question! :ok:
As a pax and as cabin crew I'm continually on the receiving end of PAs from the cockpit and while there is the occasional really good one, many are just barely understandable and far too many are utterly amateurish and ineffective.

To take some pressure off you though; as soon as the pax get stressed they will only understand/hear maximum 30% of what you say. How ever well thought out and well presented your PA is.;)

FWIW, here are some of my suggestions in addition to the good stuff Max Angle and flufdriver have already shared:
Speak VERY S L O W L Y. When you sound like a total retard to yourself, that's when you have the right speed.
Think about what you will say and make a few notes. What is relevant information for you, is not always relevant for the pax. What is obvious to you and therefore wouldn't need saying, isn't always obvious to the pax and the cabin crew. There also is such a thing as too much information. Keep it simple.
Tell the cabin boss first and give him/her a short amount of time to inform the CC and have them present in the cabin while you make your announcement. Just having the FAs visible will calm the pax.
Do not mince your words, do not use double-speak, do not fluff around the issue. No need for PCness IMO. Again, keep it simple. In non-normal situations pax need and want the truth. When they feel treated like mushrooms (kept in dark/fed sh!t) they are likely to become fractious rather than compliantly cooperative
At the end of your PA, summarize, and tell them that the FAs in the cabin will be pleased to answer any questions they have. (and they WILL have questions, most likely just needing a repeat of what you just said)
Check back with Purser after about 5 mins to see if pax understood you, and if not, let her/him do another PA, simply repeating yours.
All of the above of course only when time allows. If little or no time, give the Purser the facts and let her/him get on with the cabin while you do your thing.
Don't know on what type you'll be Captain, but on the 737 and anything smaller, the pax can see you when you stand at the front in the aisle with the microphone and they LOVE it when the Captain speaks to them face to face when there is a problem before take-off. You're the Boss, all pax know that and nothing beats face to face communication from God :) . It makes the pax feel appreciated and taken seriously. Also, just the look of the uniform and the stripy sleeve serve to becalm most people.


Best of luck with your command course & new Captaincy.

[Kit d'Rection KG]

I think it's important to remember that the purpose of such a PA is probably:
1. Tell the passengers that the plan has changed, and,
2. Reassure them as they'll possibly be concerned (remember, though, that they may be completely unaware of the problem).

Also, in some cases, it is a sufficiently low priority to be kept very brief. Aviate, navigate, communicate, give the NITS brief (I assume you use NITS or something similar), then PA.

I would caution very strongly against being specific about the problem in any way, unless it's very obvious to the passengers (eg, big flames from an engine surge/stall at night).

Therefore, I'd offer the following as a starting point:

"Ladies and gentleman, Captain Bloggs speaking, I'd like to have your attention for a few moments. A short while ago, we had an indication of a problem with one of the aircraft's systems. We've taken the appropriate action and the problem has been resolved, but it's not sensible to continue the flight to Faraway International. We're about thirty miles from Nearby Airport, where the weather is good with light winds and fine visibility, and we'll be landing there in about fifteen minutes. Once we've landed, I'll take care of arranging to get you to your destination as soon as possible. In the meantime, the cabin crew will appreciate your attention as they prepare for our landing. I'll speak with you again when we're on the ground."

Speaking slowly and clearly is vitally important. Avoid words like 'emergency'. Make sure you speak in a relaxed but confident tone, and loudly enough too. If possible use the hand microphone (the audio quality always seems much better).

[Kit d'Rection KG]

PS

A good command course should have a module on this. If yours hasn't, ask for some guidance you could ask your simulator instructor to suggest an appropriate PA for each non-normal exercise, to begin with, and then take over the reins.

[skiesfull]

Think very carefully about what you are about to say (having briefed the crew-in charge first and allowed time for that briefing to be passed on to the cabin crew), speak deliberately and be economic with the truth (but don't tell lies).No-one can give you an exact speech to repeat, as each emergency will be different - just do not ramble on or blurt out too much techy stuff;- as always KEEP IT SIMPLE!

[low n' slow]

My guidelines:
-Don't lie, it'll bite you later when the fault grows...
-Call it an "indication". An indication can be anything so basically it's not a lie.
-Dont give promises.
-Let them know you'll be back as soon as you have more info.
-Let them know what the immediate action is.
-To the CA: What, where and when. On ground: Why.

/LnS

[beamer]

Low n slow has it about right

[old,not bold]

[quote=Juud;2989802]
=Do not mince your words, do not use double-speak, do not fluff around the issue.Says it all, really, apart from please, please do not insult your passengers' intelligence. They've already got a pretty good idea that something's badly wrong, when that's the actualite. Funny noises (or total silence!), unexpected or strange manoeuvres, g forces, sun on the wrong side, are all clues that most passengers will pick up on quickly, quite apart from seeing the engines on fire. That's why it's important to tell people why these things are happening when there is no problem, as well as when there is one.

Whoever said "don't lie" was right; don't even tell a half-truth. You won't get away with it.

The best antidote to panic, when you're clutching the armrests and scared out of your wits, is confidence that the person in charge is straight, competent and on top of the problem.

[Thunderbug]

Thank you all for your contributions. It's all good stuff. Hopefully any non-normals I have will now not even rate one of those small paragraphs in The Times!
Cheers

T'bug :ok:

[SteveSmith]

"Ladies and gentleman, Captain Bloggs speaking, I'd like to have your attention for a few moments. A short while ago, we had an indication of a problem with one of the aircraft's systems. We've taken the appropriate action and the problem has been resolved, but it's not sensible to continue the flight to Faraway International. We're about thirty miles from Nearby Airport, where the weather is good with light winds and fine visibility, and we'll be landing there in about fifteen minutes. Once we've landed, I'll take care of arranging to get you to your destination as soon as possible. In the meantime, the cabin crew will appreciate your attention as they prepare for our landing. I'll speak with you again when we're on the ground."

As slf, but one who knows a bit more than nothing about aviation, I'm not sure I'd be happy with that. I'd rather know a bit more about what it is that's gone wrong, which would allow me to make my own judgement about how serious it is.

I understand you're aiming not to worry people, but I think that by being non-specific, people will generally be inclined to assume the worst, especially if they're not frequent / knowledgable flyers.

By being specific about the problem, you are likely to reassure those people who do understand what you're telling them, and those who don't will be no worse off (i.e. they'll assume the worst whether you've told them nothing, or told them something that they didn't understand.)

Hope that makes sense,

Steve.

[Kit d'Rection KG]

As slf, but one who knows a bit more than nothing about aviation, I'm not sure I'd be happy with that. I'd rather know a bit more about what it is that's gone wrong, which would allow me to make my own judgement about how serious it is.


respectfully, Steve, that means that you're a long way from being a typical passenger. Technical details, which they don't understand, will discomfort passengers. Rest assured, if you're on my aircraft, and I make that PA, your continued safety will be the result of what I and my crew do - not the result of your own machinations (which could, in fact, be detrimental). If you happpen to be on board, please come and ask, after landing, what went wrong, and I'll (probably) be pleased to be more specific.

One further thought - keep it simple, and the likelihood of making the day-after-tomorrow's fish and chip papers is reduced.

[sinala1]

By being specific about the problem, you are likely to reassure those people who do understand what you're telling them

Respectfully I have to disagree with that statement... there are certain words that pax will hear and immediately shut off afterwards, forming their own conclusions.

The example I refer to is when we (I am Cabin Supervisor) had a Landing Gear Indicator light fault. The main lights did not come on, however the backup system did, indicating all 3 gears were down (737 short haul flight). We were flying into a non-engineering port, where the a/c would have been grounded due to lack of engineering backup. The captain decided to divert back to an engineering port (an hours drive down the highway on a bus for the pax).

In his PA, the captain mentioned Indicator Lights only - did not say the words "landing gear", as this would cause immediate and unnecessary concern/panic amongst the pax, and as Juud said they only hear about 30% of what is being said anyway.

It is possible to be as truthful as is required without going into minute specific detail that is not only unnecessary, but will also cause panic amongst a crowd of people who are already aware something is not quite right.
:ok:

[Blues&twos]

As slf with above average knowledge of aviation (like SteveSmith), and as a controls engineer I would feel short changed by an announcement tellng me there was a problem with some non-specific indication or other.

On the other hand I understand that on a crowded flight it only takes one or two overanxious pax to cause mayhem, and keeping everyone calm is a priority presumably (after sorting the problem of course!)

In reality if I asked a captain what went wrong after an incident, is he/she really likely to want to talk to me?

A fair while ago I used to drive ambulances, I now drive rescue boats in my spare time. I have found that the quickest way to instill calmness in "non-normal" situations is to appear and sound calm, unhurried and confident yourself.....even if in reality your heart rate could be measured in kilohertz and you've got several gallons of adrenaline coursing through your system.

[low n' slow]

In reality if I asked a captain what went wrong after an incident, is he/she really likely to want to talk to me?



If the incident results in the flight being cancelled or we have to divert for some reason and there is time afterwards, our aim is allways to gather the pax in some area in the terminal and debrief them much as we debrief ourselves. In this case there's no problem in telling exactly what went wrong and exactly what we did about the problem. Let the pax ask questions.

One important thing here is to make shure the pax have an idea of what has happened so that they don't make up their own stories to tell the press, although it's going to happen, no matter how hard you try. In this case, there is no limit to the amount of info that can be given. Points to remember here are:
Appearance:
If possible, find a shirt that does NOT have big wet rings under the armpits.
Make shure the shirt is properly tucked in.
Make shure the tie is properliy tied and is not "casual friday" looking.
SHAVE, if you didn't do it earlier (perhaps this one only applies to me...).

Body language:
No arms crossed
Keep your hands out of your pockets.
Don't hunch as usual, remember what your drillseargant told you if you ever had one.
Don't lean against things.
Have the pax sit down and you stand up when you speak.

/LnS