Go Back  PPRuNe Forums > Flight Deck Forums > Rumours & News
Reload this Page >

FAA requires memory item briefing prior to flight

Wikiposts
Search
Rumours & News Reporting Points that may affect our jobs or lives as professional pilots. Also, items that may be of interest to professional pilots.

FAA requires memory item briefing prior to flight

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 5th Aug 2008, 00:46
  #1 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: KCMO
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
FAA requires memory item briefing prior to flight

FAA will soon mandate the cockpit crew review and brief aloud the memory items for cabin pressurization warning horns...

Dont those idiots know thats why its a MEMORY item? So we dont HAVE to brief it.
The_Grifted is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 01:03
  #2 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: FORT MAQTA
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Grifted,
In my airline (Part 135) we are already required to brief the folowing memory items at least on the first flight of the sequence:

REJECTED T/O
ENG FIRE OR FAILURE- TAKE OFF CONTINUED
PRESSURIZATION PROBLEMS.

ANY OTHER THE COMMANDER DEEMS NECESSARY.

I've seen guys handle the first three with no probls but stutter when the capt throws in the initial actions of UNRELIABLE AIRSPEED. I therefore have no probs with this kind of brief, this way I know we are on the same page in those situations where we cant immediately get guidance from the QRH.



STRAIGHTEN UP AN FLY RIGHT!!!
tuskegee airman is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 07:29
  #3 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: UK
Age: 83
Posts: 3,788
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes on 3 Posts
Our FOD recently made the comment that any pilot who appears on the flight deck and who doesn't know his/her recall (memory) items is guilty of criminal negligence. I agree with him.
JW411 is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 08:05
  #4 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Oran
Posts: 145
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Good Idea

For years now I have been part of the cabin crew briefing where the No.1 ask's saftey questions to the cabin crew. I always thought this would be a good Idea for the flight deck too.

Not to catch anyone out but to refresh the memory.

Indeed before leaving the flight deck for my inflight rest, I always ask the gys left upfront to show me touch drills for engine failure and depressurisation failure.

And when on the Atlantic a quick refresher on Slop,WX Diversion off track, ect, again not to catch any one out, just to refresh the mind.
icemanalgeria is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 08:16
  #5 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: UK
Posts: 3,982
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Firstly agree that as professional pilots we should know our Recall/Memory items.

But "questions" during flight preparation then please NO! We have sim checks, line checks and there is enough to think about at the flight planning stage without using the precious time to regurgitate stuff parrot fashion. In short we have ALREADY demonstrated competence in this area during recurrent checks!

Yes quite right to review emergencies in accordance with SOP in take off brief. On a normal line flight if time permits I find it useful to pull the QRH out for a review but don't believe in cross-examining my crew in an exam like style to test their knowledge. Better to have some fun doing it and then more is learned!

The only way to validate correct execution of recall items is actually to DO them - usually in the simulator! Saying what you would do is NOT the same as doing it!
fireflybob is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 08:22
  #6 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: USA
Posts: 951
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Ridiculous!

Why not just brief ALL of the memory items? What's so special about pressurization? What about engine fire drills or go-around procedures? Must I brief the procedure for a wake turbulence or windshear encounter too, or is it okay to just rely on the checklist? While we're at it, we might as well recite the entire limitations section of the AFM. Maybe conduct a full checkride prior to each flight day. Where does it stop?

Maybe it would be a better idea to concentrate our energies and attention to the task at hand. You know, departure particulars, special procedures, where we'll go if we have a problem, that kind of thing... Let's leave the memory items to our training and perhaps the occasional self-study session.

I'd like to see the official notice from the FAA outlining this new mandate. Until I do, I have difficulty believing that even they could be so obtusely reactionary as to require such nonsensical whimsy. Long, drawn out briefings are not the way to go. Clear, concise and focused is a much more productive use of valuable mental focus. If each recurrent training event is not often enough to remember abnormal and emergency drills, then increase the frequency of recurrent training until it is!

Best regards,

Westhawk

Last edited by westhawk; 5th Aug 2008 at 08:39.
westhawk is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 08:45
  #7 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Paradise
Age: 68
Posts: 1,553
Received 52 Likes on 20 Posts
Preflight recital

Exactly who are the FAA requiring to do this?

121 carriers?

135 operators?

Foreign carriers flying to the US?

If they were really concerned about this, then perhaps they should mandate more frequent sim checks. I understand that these are only mandatory once every 12 months in the US. At the other end of the spectrum (equally ridiculous), I am required to do 8 sim sessions per year by my carrier.

While we are reciting all this stuff, why not say the Lord's Prayer and sing God Save the Queen as well?
chimbu warrior is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 09:17
  #8 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Where the boss is
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
that's like some collegues saying at the end of the briefing

" Otherwise standard call outs"....yep man, I wanted just to say chewing gum instead of engine fire n°1 today...

Anyway, lets brief for what we seem to be special of the day, bad WX, emergency return if high ground around, any items that are relevant. But for God sake, don't always brief for the same stuff, what can we do if a concentration of birds is around the airfield? Maybe do a barrel roll right after take off to avoid it?!

Cheers

Fly safe, think safe!
Lear Jockey is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 10:24
  #9 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2002
Location: GC Paradise
Posts: 1,101
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes on 3 Posts
What's the point of briefing Memory Items for say, Eng Fire drills before take-off, if subsequently when you do take-off you turn R instead of L and fly into a mountain?

Keep briefings succinct and relevant to the current circumstances!
FlexibleResponse is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 11:47
  #10 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: UK.
Posts: 4,390
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
you turn R instead of L and fly into a mountain
Very good point. Terrain is part of the briefing with and without engine failure together with cleanup, emg. turn etc.
Depressurisation? Get on oxygen take a couple of seconds to assess the situation - don't descend onto traffic, terrain - the escape route is open next to you - isn't it? The next bits are secondary.

When does the FAA want the depressurisation briefing to be carried out?
Waste of valuable time before departure - how about during the climb?
Basil is offline  
Old 5th Aug 2008, 11:58
  #11 (permalink)  
742
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 216
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Briefings -- please note the root word "brief" -- provide a window of about 30 seconds. Certainly less than a minute. After that people start to tune it out. This is human nature.

They should be meaningful. Short, to the point and meaningful.

And in this case my bet is that the "FAA" is just some fed trying to make a name for himself. "The FAA" speaks in text, and as others I would like to see the hard copy of this new policy; not to mention what FAR they would use to enforce it.

I do run through the reject and "go" scenerios before each takeoff within my own mind, but there is no need to share SOP reviews unless there is something out of the ordinary.
742 is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 01:54
  #12 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: surfing, watching for sharks
Posts: 4,078
Received 55 Likes on 34 Posts
I understand that these are only mandatory once every 12 months in the US
Where did you hear/read this?
West Coast is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 04:50
  #13 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: FORT MAQTA
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
not just a recital

chimbu warrior,
I disagree, this is not just some mindless parrot-like recital. It is a drill in response to a serious inflite failure and as such needs to be performed/rehearsed precisely.

Jw411,
I agree with the "......criminal negligence." part of your post but I would prefer to discover this negligence during a brief rather than in the middle of an emergency descent for example.

The guy seated next to me has demonstrated repeatedly through simulators, line checks etc that he can fly an approach to minimums. But I'm going to watch his every approach with a critical eye (as I expect him to do mine). Not because I dont trust him but because this is an important measure in enhancing airline safety.

I view briefing memory items this way.... I know what they are but how do I know what's in the other person's MEMORY unless he tells me!!!

Remember also that there are airlines where the first time you lay eyes on your other crewmember(s) might have been when you checked in for the flight.




STRAIGHTEN UP AN FLY RIGHT
tuskegee airman is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 05:53
  #14 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: U.K.
Age: 68
Posts: 380
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Listen carefully!

During a brief for a rejected take off leading to an evacuation I remember a newish F/O reciting ‘Pressurisation Manual – SHUT’ It was meant to be ‘Manual – OPEN’ So at the end of the brief I queried his slip to 1) Find out if it was a genuine mistake 2) To ensure that in the event of an evacuation, possibly 20 minutes later, he would not spoil our day.

I can’t even remember whether it was a genuine mistake or not but at the time I thought that it was a worthwhile learning point for both of us and made the chances of a successful evacuation more likely.

A briefless flight must by definition, raise the stakes unnecessarily?

DB
Dream Buster is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 09:31
  #15 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: UK
Posts: 3,982
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
I think maybe this thread has drifted a little. Yes take off/approach briefings make sense and indeed are required in most company SOPs. This is not the same as an interrogation at flight despatch on memory items.
fireflybob is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 09:51
  #16 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: USA
Posts: 3,218
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Dont those idiots know thats why its a MEMORY item? So we dont HAVE to brief it.
There are many reasons to have memory items...but not having to brief those procedures certainly isn't one of them. Not by a long shot.
SNS3Guppy is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 10:38
  #17 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2001
Location: London,England
Posts: 1,391
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
There are many reasons to have memory items..
Actually there is only one reason to have memory items, they are tasks which must be actioned without delay in circumstances that do not allow time for a checklist to be consulted. They should be strictly limited to the "do or die" items such as initial actions for stopping, engine failure, decompression and unreliable airspeed, can't think of anything else that needs them really, evacuation should certainly not be performed from memory, plenty of time to set the park brake and get the QRH out.
Max Angle is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 10:51
  #18 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Gatwick
Posts: 1,980
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Who calls the police if you get an item wrong?
Litebulbs is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 10:53
  #19 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Ireland
Posts: 51
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Would you not think it is such an important item (how much useful consciousness do you have left once the masks drop?) that it merits a briefing? In Europe so many low-cost carriers are using secondary airfields with short runways and executing bleeds off take-offs to nurse a few extra pounds of thrust out of the engines, then forgetting to switch it on again, that pressurisation warnings are more common that one would like to think. I know of one incident involvng a well known airline where cabin crew thought some pax were showing the early signs of hypoxia.
talent is offline  
Old 6th Aug 2008, 13:55
  #20 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: UK
Posts: 3,982
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Would you not think it is such an important item (how much useful consciousness do you have left once the masks drop?) that it merits a briefing? In Europe so many low-cost carriers are using secondary airfields with short runways and executing bleeds off take-offs to nurse a few extra pounds of thrust out of the engines, then forgetting to switch it on again, that pressurisation warnings are more common that one would like to think. I know of one incident involvng a well known airline where cabin crew thought some pax were showing the early signs of hypoxia.
What's new about Bleeds Off take offs? - we did them for years on a regular basis when I was on the B737-200 and -300.

On the a/c I am on with a loco in Europe I have yet to do a Bleeds Off take off in 2 years of operation!! That said of course we should know how to do same and reconfigure when airborne etc.

talent, I am not quite sure what point you are making - I would have thought all professional flight deck crew on jet a/c are aware of the average times of useful consciousness at 35/38,000 ft - what's the big deal?
fireflybob is offline  


Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.