Risk Management Magazine

While backing the equipment, I struck a vehicle that had entered the area without my knowledge. I never saw anyone get into the vehicle, and I never saw it back out behind me. The moment of impact occurred before I had any visual indication that someone was there.

My experience at the red light was a classic near miss — an unplanned event that possessed the potential for harm but, by a stroke of luck, did not result in injury or damage. These close calls provide invaluable learning opportunities.

We can preach situational awareness and vigilance until we are blue in the face, and we can practice endless techniques to keep ourselves out of dangerous scenarios, but no individual can see everything. In aviation, we rely on the entire crew to fill in those blind spots.