Risk Management Magazine

Army aviation is a demanding profession. You quickly learn how important it is to recognize and control situations that can cause problems, like being in a hurry. My story happened during routine flight operations.

While assigned to a 12-hour quick-reaction force shift in Regional Command-South, Afghanistan, my team prepped the assigned AH-64D as part of the attack weapons team (AWT). I was assigned run-up duty for the backup aircraft, which included preflight, run-up, communications and mission equipment checks to ensure they were fully mission capable (FMC).

As an aviator, I am cautious around anyone who uses the word “easy.” Just because a mission appears to be simple does not mean it will turn out that way. It is our responsibility as pilots to conduct proper flight planning procedures and risk management to identify potential hazards in the mission before takeoff.