AA/APA CIRP A Cooperative Model For CIRP ALPA Pilot Assistance Forum 2017
FlightAssist FlightAssist was renamed CIRP to match the worldwide standard
AA CIRP Structure Jointly run by AA/APA since 1995 Renèe Hair AA Management First Officer Ken Hagan APA Union 45 Trained Peer Support Volunteers (PSV) All PSVs are pilots Have a bench of 50 more PSVs Works with: EAP/HIMS/Wingman/Checkmate/Pro Standards Other employee groups Other airlines (you folks!) ICISF
The Role APA Plays Peer Support Volunteer (PSV) Recruitment Training Conduct defusing, debriefs, et cetera Education of line pilots Impact of stress Coping strategies for stress Communication Crew lounge postings and brochures Publication of articles Emails
The Role AA Plays Management of PSV activations Funding for PSV training Funding for MHP assistance, as required Notification of critical incidents Management of PSV activations Time during human factors training
The Intangibles Full support of our VP of Flight Full support of Union leadership Long-term working relationship that has weathered political storms No hiding of information
Some Recent Events Smoke in cockpit Engine shutdowns Electrical (down to battery) Pilot cardiac event in flight Lightning strike/smoke in aircraft High-speed rejected takeoff/blown tires Loss of pressurization Near mid-air (multiple) RNO Air Race crash AA383 ORD RTO:
Aa 383 ORD RTO engine fire
Social media issues
Activation Protocol AA Ops Center, upon departure of an event, puts out an IOCN message If an event meets guidelines for a debriefing, Renèe Hair will call a PSV and relay crew contacts and event info PSV calls each pilot and does a phone debrief PSV checks in with the crew a week later If all is well, that is the end
Follow-Up If a crew member is in need of more help, PSV will refer them to the appropriate resource (EAP, HIMS, MHP, etc.) If the event is unusual, Renèe Hair and I will discuss if we think it wise to activate a PSV In some cases, I will follow up with the crew a month or so later for quality assurance
Created in 1995 The Evolution of FlightAssist By 2000, we had approximately 30 PSVs After 9/11, we grew to 100 PSVs, including four qualified instructors Structured as a subcommittee of Aeromedical HIMS Project Wingman CIRP Pilot Occupational Health
The Evolution of FlightAssist In 2007, APA FlightAssist Chairman was promoted to overall chair of Aeromedical A series of FlightAssist chairs came and went Long periods of inattentive leadership Years with no refresher training Long period of tension between company and union Union money was spent in other areas Many of our PSVs ended up with their own stresses
Mission Overextension FlightAssist was originally created to help pilots after a professional event Mission overextension found us also reaching out to help pilots in personal events While CIRP volunteers can be good in both areas, they have not been trained as such These personal events are better left to the AA/APA EAP, Project Wingman, HIMS, etc.
Give it to CIRP, they deal with that touchie-feelie s***! Post-disaster housing Marriage problems Rebelling teenagers Aging parents Christmas Eve empty house Bankruptcy Death of loved one
Don t Get Sucked In! We got sucked into areas that we did not have the training nor expertise We tried to fix or solve every problem Need to develop other resources Once again, Project Wingman referral
Creating a BIG Safety Net Aeromedical Committee HIMS (alcohol and substance abuse) Project Wingman (suicide, personal/family issues) Checkmate (training issues) Professional Standards (conflict with fellow crew members) International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF)
Planning For Change Average age of AA pilot group is 53 Opportunity for new blood to take over in the next decade Need to cultivate leadership replacements Always work yourself out of a job!
What Keeps Me Up At Night? Major Aircraft Accident Years since an accident drill Crew taking the second aircraft Crews have little understanding of the physiological effects of the first event
?? Questions??