Cockpit Management

Paper Summary:

This paper takes a general look at the levels of management in a cockpit of commercial airlines. It discusses the authority the captain holds over the first officer in the cockpit. The writer explains that the dynamics of the relationships in an airline cockpit are varied, but the captain always holds specific authority over the other crew including the first officer. The captain's authority in the cockpit is necessary for a number of reasons, but when it reaches a point where the first officer is afraid to challenge the captain's command and decisions, then the results can be devastating and even deadly.

From the Paper:

"This acknowledged authority relates directly to aircraft regulations as well as history and accepted norms in the industry. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) states that ultimately, the captain holds the final authority over the crew and the airplane. The CFR also demands captains have considerable more flight time than first officers. Captains must have at least 1500 hours, while first officers only require 200 hours (Tarnow 112). In addition to the CFR rules, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also have certain cockpit rules which include "'the pilot in command of an aircraft is directly responsible for, and is the final authority as to, the operation of that aircraft' (1996 CFR, Paragraph 91.3)" (Tarnow 113). However, the rules also state that during an emergency, the pilot can deviate from these rules. Thus, the captain is much more experienced in flight matters, and his authority is often "gold" in the airline cockpit."

More papers on Cockpit Management:

• Research Paper # 25910 : "Cockpit Resource Management"
• Term Paper # 112978 : "Crew Resource Management (CRM)"
• Research Paper # 24545 : "Production Management Process For The Boeing 767"

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