Red Light/Green Light: Investigating Not Only What Went Wrong, but Also What Went Right

Rotor Safety Challenge (RSC)
Tracks: Operations, Pilot, Safety
Instructor: Scott Shappell, HFACS, Inc.

Traditionally, accident investigators have focused on the events that went wrong in a mishap to prevent them from happening again. However, we can quantify the resiliency of our safety systems by also investigating what went right and what prevented the event from being worse. This module will provide insight into how we can transform our investigative process to fix those things that went wrong while also identifying which programs and processes saved the day, thereby providing a better understanding of the health of our safety systems.

Instructor Bio

Scott Shappell is a founding partner of HFACS, Inc., and a department chair and professor of human factors at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). Before joining ERAU, Scott was a professor of industrial engineering at Clemson University and, prior to that, human factors research branch manager at the Civil Aerospace Medical Institute. Scott also served over 16 years in the US Navy as an aerospace experimental psychologist. He has published and presented over 200 papers, books, and presentations in the fields of accident investigation, system safety, spatial disorientation, sustained operations, and fatigue. Scott holds a PhD in neuroscience from the University of Texas Medical Branch.