Seminars on Safety – Seminar 1: Freeze and you are dead

[RedBaron]

I had a brief discussion with accomplished and safety-conscious pilot Tom McGowan and agreed right away that we should revive discussions around safety, which usually only take place after accident reports. I’ve got more essays up my sleeve and encourage every pilot to share their thoughts by writing them up, too. I am also hoping that we can add a folder to this website where we can document and save articles and discussions for future readings.

Today’s topic is an ancient survival instinct that we all know of as “freezing”. Deeply buried and hard-wired into the reptilian complex of our brain we all become like “deer in the headlights” when confronted with a sudden and present danger. Importantly, this powerful survival instinct precludes any involvement of the intellect and emotions.

Without the option of “fight of flight”, freezing or waiting for the threat to go away is indeed your best chance of survival. However, evolution didn’t have fast-moving vehicles of all sorts in mind when this instinct was selected for. It is as fatal to the “deer in the headlights” as it is to a HG pilot who didn’t spot the power line when planning his/her approach.

So, I blew my launch at WS not so long ago. Back then I reported that I tried to abort my launch when I realized my glider was seriously banked. It wasn’t a conscious decision made by the neocortex of my brain. I just froze. This survival instinct got activated because after a long history of solid launches I could not cope with this event by drawing from past experiences. I could not prevent it by projecting into the future, either. Today I can. Not only do I know that my skills don’t always keep my glider from getting seriously banked (I am projecting this threat into the future), I also know what actions I have to take to keep this particular threat, which I am now familiar with, from becoming an incidence (by drawing from past experience). It will be much less of a threat the next time, that is.

Freezing is a survival instinct that is hard-wired into us. It is a mechanism the activation of which must be avoided when flying an aircraft. Once activated there is a high chance that this response will yield a crash since we can’t override it in a short time. It is important to keep in mind that the perception of the quality of a threat varies with mileage and confidence. For example, an inexperienced squeamish pilot may freeze when on course with a solid object after a badly planned approach, while a more experienced confident pilot would likely turn 90 degrees and land crosswind. If the approach was planned badly we usually blame the pilot and tell her/him to go back to the training hill. If, however, the approach was planned well and the possibility of impact was the result of thermal activity, then we must realize that the precipitation of an accident was not the pilot’s fault for he cannot override Mother Nature.

We must take measures to avoid activation of this instinct. I believe the best strategy to do so is by means of gradual and continuous exposure to situations that are moderately threatening. While we must never fly outside the flight control envelope of our aircraft I think it is important to push our currency envelope if we want build experience, confidence and ultimately, a higher tolerance level to deal with situations that might otherwise have us freeze and become sheep herded by fate. Based on the fact that past experiences as well as anticipation (or the lack thereof) decide whether your neocortex or your reptile brain take care of a threat, I believe that pilots who only show up “when it’s really good” or who limit their flights to mellow conditions and mellow sites are indeed accidents waiting to happen.

Fly more often, challenge yourself, expand the window you’re willing to fly in and, most importantly, stay current and exposed. ’Cause you can’t always run from it. To put it in Cavanaugh’s wise words (which didn’t make any sense to me at the time): It’ll be good for ya!

[mcgowantk]

Janni

Thanks for starting up these posts. I had an idea similar to this when I was the safety director, but never put them into action.

Regarding freezing, it happens occasionally to all of us, but can be quite serious when flying a hang glider. I like to think that training on what to do when things are going wrong can help. The most basic thing I try to do when in trouble is pull in. Generally it can't hurt to get more airspeed. Even when low, I try to get airspeed before giving up for the crash. One time, 12 years ago, I let a wing get seriously lifted on final and just before flairing at the Sac. Rather than just letting the glider stall and turn, I pulled in and got my wings somewhat level. I flaired for what it was worth and ended up with just a bent tip batten. At the moment, I thought I was going to hit pretty hard. However, pulling in helped enourmously.

I hope everyone flies safe this weekend. I can fly one day this weekend. I am thinking of Woodstock Friday but am holding out hope for a tow day at Highland Sunday. I will decide between Friday and Sunday tomorrow morning.

Tom McGowan

[Danny Brotto]

Yanni

Nice write up. You are referring to the “fright or flight” response. Okay in aviation terms, “fright” = freeze (no bueno)… “flight” = “at all costs, keep flying the aircraft (better bueno)!

That behavior to “fly the aircraft” can be ingrained, as you point out, by getting out there and exposing yourself to situations of increasing complexity (and hopefully not near the ground!)

Even if you manage not to freeze, a pilot may try to slow down a difficult situation which may be the absolutely wrong thing to do. Tom McGowan illustrated an example of his at the North Site (Sac.) Last year on a windy day, I came in mid-day to land my sailplane. I knew final over the tree line would be very windy and turbulent. Thing is the turbulence and wind velocity was way more that I could anticipate. I had a concern that I would not make it over the tree line and found myself starting to slow down… wrong! I caught myself doing something I know I should not be doing. I pushed the stick forward and got over that tree line. I had to make a conscious decision to do what my unconscious mind was incorrectly tricking me into doing.

Learning experiences and reflection… get into the mix… that’s what Mark Cavanaugh was referring to.

Danny Brotto

[mikel]

Right on Danny,

Flying for the Air Force, we called that "situational awareness"
Know where you are at all times, and pay more attention to the two
most critical parts of flight.(take off (launching), the other landing)

Stay safe,

Mike

[Lauren Tjaden]

Smart post, Janni. Should be an article in the magazine. Submit it!
Lauren

[hefalump]

I wonder how closely related Freezing is with Target Fixation. Some of the examples give like flying straight towards an object in the LZ rather than turning 90degrees to avoid it, flying into the power wires you didn't see while setting up your approach, or staring at the tree line your not sure you'll clear sound like classic Target Fixation to me.

If your looking right at the obstruction you will typically fly right into it. The wind sock at Ridgely always seems to suck me in. I have to consciously tell my self to look at where I want to go rather than the obstruction. Even if it's in my periphery vision I seem to drift towards it. But of course if you frozen on the obstruction you can't look away.

JD