FAA · FAASTeam Safety Articles
Practical Risk Management for Night VFR
In Brief
What It Addresses
enjoyable, if pilots understand the differences of night flying and take the necessary actions to prepare for a safe flight. This guide suggests ways to teach risk management for safe VFR flying at night.
From the Document: selected source passages, quoted as written, for a quick overview.
Practical
Risk Management for Night VFR Flying Risk Management Decision Path
Pilot
Aircraft enVironment External Factors Consequences
Alternatives
Reality External Factors Transfer
Eliminate
Accept
Mitigate PERCEIVE HAZARDS associated with:
PROCESS RISK LEVEL
by assessing:
PERFORM RISK
MANAGEMENT
by deciding whether to:
Federal Aviation Administration
Flying at night can be very
enjoyable, if pilots understand the differences of night flying and take the necessary actions to prepare for a safe flight. This guide suggests ways to teach risk management for safe VFR flying at night.
PURPOSE
PROFILE
PRACTICES
POSTFLIGHT
Factors in night accidents often include errors in planning, decision-making, and risk management. Fatigue can contribute to such errors. Its effects include:
”Channelized” attention
Poor judgment
Slowed reaction time
Inattention
Ease of distraction Other errors common in night VFR accidents include:
Lack of proper equipment (flashlights, batteries)
Loss of situational awareness
Problems with night vision
Inadequate traffic scan
Vulnerability to optical illusions Consider structuring a night training or proficiency session as a short crosscountry flight, with night takeoff and landing practice at the destination airport. During each phase of the flight, look for (or create) “teachable moment” scenarios that provide an opportunity to teach good risk management practices for night VFR flying.
Sample Scenarios
1. Preflight: Ask the pilot to list hazards related to pilot (fatigue, night experience), aircraft (working lights), environment (airport lighting, terrain), and external pressures (closing times). Stress the importance of a thorough preflight that includes checking all essential lights and reviewing the location of key circuit breakers.
2. Taxi/Takeoff: Simulate an electrical failure during taxi to teach the importance of planning the taxi route, knowing the airport layout, and positioning a flashlight to illuminate the panel in case of electrical failure after takeoff. Use the Airport/Facility Directory to obtain the correct frequencies for activating lights.
Enroute: Consider diverting the flight due to simulated bad weather. Ask the pilot to select an alternate and explain why it is a safe choice. Encourage use of the Air Safety Foundation’s Terrain Avoidance Planning tools, or carry IFR enroute charts to help stay above ter-Use the postflight discussion to ask questions that let the pilot learn from his or her decisions. For instance:
What part(s) of the flight made you uncomfortable?
If you could change something you did, what would it be, and why? rain. A VFR flight plan and VFR flight following are excellent practices for night VFR. If the flight takes place above 5,000 MSL, remind the pilot that oxygen can help night vision.
4. Descent/Approach: Be sure that the pilot understands the destination airport’s runway layout and lighting. Where is the rotating beacon in relation to the runway or to terrain?
Landing/Parking: A new place can be confusing in darkness, so teach the pilot to keep a taxi diagram close by. During ground operations near other aircraft, do not use strobes or aim landing lights at other pilots.
Throughout the flight, ask the pilot to consider consequences of each decision, list alternative actions, recognize the reality of the situation, and be sensitive to any external pressures that can distract or drive an unsafe decision.
Source: Federal Aviation Administration — www.faasafety.gov. Reproduced from the published record; FlightPush adds formatting only.
Author: FAA
FAASTeam library-70133