The Mental Wellbeing of Pilots
6th July 2018
By Nathan Harper
The information I found when I was looking for the materials to help me write this blog was from the British Psychological Society. They have carried out research into what is needed to understand, monitor and maintain pilots’ mental health. This blog will give a psychological perspective on the unique working surroundings of pilots and look at the factors that may contribute to these people getting mental health problems. The investigation was commissioned after a plane crash.
The mental health of workers is a primary concern for airlines. This issue has recently been even more magnified by the GermanWings crash, which was apparently caused by the pilot deliberately.
People who work in aviation work in an environment that is unique to any other job in the jobs industry. Working in this field brings its moments of stress. A range of ‘stressors’ can be experienced which could increase the risk of developing mental health. But the frequency of workers developing mental health is hard to determine because they are scared of revealing it which could lead to a potential loss of licence.
Mental health is only behind cardiovascular disease in terms of the most common ways a pilot loses his/her licence, so pilots having psychology sessions should be a key inclusion on their job description. Airlines should be responsible for the implementation of high quality psychological training policies including high quality psychology and mental health assessments carried out by qualified psychologists throughout their pilots’ careers so that they can understand, monitor and maintain their mental health and help reach its targets for optimum wellbeing.
To achieve the goals by the intended year of 2020, the aviation industry should:
- Employ specialised aviation psychologists on a full time basis. These should have proven knowledge, familiarity and experience in the industry
- By the same time, aim to design and introduce a specialised post- qualification course in the fields of Aviation and Aerospace Psychology. It should be developed and recognised by the aviation industry, the British Psychological Society and higher education centres.
- Aviation psychologists and Aviation Medical Examiners must collaborate together
- Signposts to different forms of support
- Publicise available policies
To improve systems, conditions and to maximise safety and passenger satisfaction, research is required into:
- The long-term effects of different stressors on pilots and how these may change
- A review into what is known about mental health within the sector. This is to identify and plug gaps.
Pressure on airline pilots is higher than ever before. They need to be physically and mentally fit for the job. They are responsible for the safe carriage of travelling passengers and the demand for air travel is predicted to double over the next 20 years. To meet the demand, investment in the workforce’s wellbeing must be a priority. For this to be done correctly, psychology assessments, sessions, monitoring and support are crucial.