Development of an FAA-EUROCONTROL technique for the analysis of human error in ATM.

Abstract

Human error has been identified as a dominant risk factor in safety-oriented industries such as air traffic control (ATC). However, little is known about the factors leading to human errors in current air traffic management (ATM) systems. The first step toward prevention of human error is to develop an understanding of where it occurs in existing systems and of the system variables which contribute to its occurrence. This paper reports on the project to harmonize the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) and the Human Error Reduction in ATM (HERA) technique. Two groups of air traffic control subject-matter experts (SMEs) participated. The first group analyzed incident cases using each technique and identified the useful concepts from each technique for these cases. The second group evaluated the concepts identified by the first group. Based on these activities, the techniques were deemed to be compatible and harmonization proceeded. Elements from both techniques were retained and many were elaborated based on the SMEs’ feedback. The integrated approach, called JANUS, is currently undergoing beta testing by seven European nations and the US Federal Aviation Administration.