Perception of causal factors in flight operations between ab-initio and expatriate pilots

The establishment of objectives in organizational safety management systems (SMS) are dependent on how the workforce perceives hazards and deficiencies. In the Asia region, it is common for airlines to recruit pilots through both ab-initio cadet programs, as well as to hire experienced expatriates from predominantly Western countries. When the workforce contains a mix of cultures and training backgrounds, perceptual differences may affect the relevance of SMS objectives and the effectiveness of consequential safety interventions. The present research compared experienced airline pilots from Asian ab-initio backgrounds with their Western, expatriate counterparts on the attribution of safety conditions related to hierarchical relations, organizational faults, human performance limitations, external faults, and human-machine interface conflicts. It was discovered that cultural values on interpersonal relations, desire for guidance, and social distance to an ‘in-group’ influenced the classification of safety deficiencies. The findings encourage SMS practitioners to include a wider diversity of perspectives when carrying out organizational SMS processes.