CASA Media Release - Thursday, 24 May 2001
Flight Safety Forum to help pilots deal with in-flight illusions
Sensory illusions commonly experienced by pilots during flight - and how to deal with them - will be one of the topics discussed at a Flight Safety Forum in Melbourne this Saturday.
The Melbourne Flight Safety Forum is part of a national air safety campaign being run in 2001 by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.
The forum targets commercial and general aviation pilots and engineers in and around Melbourne with the aim of providing them with the very latest information on flight safety.
CASA's Assistant Director, Aviation Safety Promotion, Mike Smith, says the forum is of vital interest to everyone in aviation.
"Aviation is constantly changing so pilots need to keep to the very forefront with the latest developments," Mr Smith says.
Aviation experts from CASA, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the Bureau of Meteorology and the aviation industry will speak at the all day forum, which runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Melbourne Convention Centre.
An aviation medical and physiology expert will talk about the phenomenon of in-flight illusions that are known to affect between 90 to 100 per cent of pilots.
Mr Smith said that sometimes pilots experience, for example, a general feeling of disorientation or a sensation of tumbling or rotating when they're not, or they might have visual illusions.
"Pilots who attend the forum will be instructed on how to identify such illusions and how to deal with them," Mr Smith said.
The forum, which is free to all participants, presents essential new information for pilots of all levels of experience and qualification.
In addition, an expert in flying at low levels will make a presentation and a commercial airline representative will be available to discuss employment opportunities and recruitment.
Media contact
Jane Dargaville
ph 02 6217 1233
mobile 0419 296 446
Ref: MR026