Aeronautical Decision-Making for Drone Pilots: PAVE, IMSAFE, DECIDE and the Hazardous Attitudes

Aeronautical decision-making (ADM) is the FAA's name for a structured way of thinking: a systematic approach that helps pilots consistently reach the best course of action for the circumstances in front of them. In the study guide's words, it is what a pilot intends to do based on the latest information they have (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 51). The same guide rejects the old idea that judgment only comes with experience: good judgment can be taught (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 52). Aeronautical decision-making and crew resource management are both knowledge areas on the Part 107 test (14 CFR 107.73(f) and (j)). The easiest way to remember the tools is by when you use them.

The foundation: hazard, risk and four principles

The study guide separates two words. A hazard is something you run into, whether it is real or only seems to be: a condition, an event or a circumstance. Risk is your judgment of how much one hazard, or several together, matters, and two pilots can judge the same hazard differently (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 53). Risk management aims to spot safety hazards early and reduce the risks that come with them (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 52). The study guide's four principles, in short (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, pp. 52 to 53):

1. Take no risk you don't need to take.
2. Let risk decisions be made by whoever can put controls on that risk.
3. Accept a risk when what you gain outweighs the danger.
4. Build risk management into all of your planning and every stage of the flight, not just the preflight.

On a drone job the regulations settle who decides: the remote pilot in command carries direct responsibility for the operation and has the final say (14 CFR 107.19(b)).

Before you leave home: IMSAFE

The study guide calls the IMSAFE checklist one of the best ways for a single pilot to reduce risk. It is a six-question check of your physical and mental readiness (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 55):

• Illness: am I sick?
• Medication: am I taking medicine that might affect my judgment or make me drowsy?
• Stress: is the job, money, health or family weighing on me?
• Alcohol: have I been drinking within 8 hours? Within 24 hours?
• Fatigue: am I tired and not adequately rested?
• Emotion: am I emotionally upset?

Two regulations back it up. Part 107 brings remote pilots, anyone at the controls and visual observers under 14 CFR 91.17 (14 CFR 107.27). That rule bars them for 8 hours after any alcoholic drink, while under the influence, and at a blood or breath alcohol level of 0.04 or above (14 CFR 91.17(a)). Separately, nobody may fly or help with the operation if they know, or should know, that a physical or mental condition of theirs would get in the way of flying safely (14 CFR 107.17).

While planning: PAVE and personal minimums

PAVE is a memory aid with one letter for each of the four places risk hides, so you can check them all before you go (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, pp. 55 to 56):

• P, pilot in command: are you ready for this flight in experience, recency, currency, and physical and emotional condition? IMSAFE answers that part.
• A, aircraft: does this job suit this aircraft, do you know it well and fly it often enough, and will it lift what you plan to carry?
• V, environment: weather, including the chance that it differs from the forecast, terrain, and airspace, including any temporary flight restrictions.
• E, external pressures: wanting to show your skills or impress someone, the general urge to get the job done, and the pride that makes it hard to admit your skills aren't where you'd like them.

The study guide singles out external pressure. It calls managing it the most important key to risk management, since it is the one category that can lead a pilot to brush aside every other risk. It also says the two most dangerous words in aviation are probably "Watch this!" (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 56). Two tools help you hold the line. Personal minimums are limits set by your own current experience and proficiency, and if the risks can't be managed safely, the answer is to cancel the flight (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 55). Personal standard operating procedures give you a release from external pressure (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 56). Write both down before the job, not on site.

On site: catch the hazardous attitude

Studies have identified five hazardous attitudes that can get in the way of sound decisions (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 53). The fix has three steps: recognize the thought, label it as hazardous, then state its antidote. The FAA suggests memorizing the antidotes so they come to mind automatically (FAA PHAK, p. 2-5). The five, with their antidotes (FAA PHAK, p. 2-5):

• Anti-authority. Sounds like "Don't tell me." Antidote: "Follow the rules. They are usually right."
• Impulsivity. Sounds like "Do it quickly." Antidote: "Not so fast. Think first."
• Invulnerability. Sounds like "It won't happen to me." Antidote: "It could happen to me."
• Macho. Sounds like "I can do it." Antidote: "Taking chances is foolish."
• Resignation. Sounds like "What's the use?" Antidote: "I'm not helpless. I can make a difference."

AC 107-2A spells out where these attitudes lead in unmanned operations: getting behind the aircraft or situation, flying without an adequate battery reserve, losing positional or situational awareness, operating outside the envelope, and skipping flight planning, preflight inspections and checklists. It names operational pressure as a contributor (AC 107-2A, para. A.2.1).

When things change: 3P and DECIDE

The 3P model is a simple, practical method you can use in every phase of flight (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 57). You perceive the hazards using PAVE, process them through the CARE checklist (Consequences, Alternatives, Reality, External factors), then perform by picking one of the TEAM options: Transfer, Eliminate, Accept or Mitigate. Then evaluate, and keep the loop running for every decision (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 58).

DECIDE is another continuous loop, with six steps: Detect, Estimate, Choose a course of action, Identify solutions, Do the necessary actions, and Evaluate the effect of the actions (FAA PHAK, p. 2-18). Detecting starts with noticing that something changed, or that an expected change didn't happen. Choosing starts from the outcome you want, and if evaluation shows the action didn't work, you go round again (FAA PHAK, p. 2-20).

Sometimes there is no time for a model. The study guide describes automatic, or naturalistic, decision-making: a reflexive kind of decision, anchored in training and experience, used most often in emergencies when there is no time to analyze. It improves with training and experience (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 61).

With a crew, or on your own

AC 107-2A treats crew resource management (CRM) as a component of ADM, in which the remote pilot makes effective use of every available resource: human resources, hardware and information. Working with a crew draws on situational awareness, sensible allocation of tasks, avoiding work overload for yourself and others, and clear communication (AC 107-2A, para. 5.3). The regulations set the baseline:

• Before flight, everyone directly taking part must be told about the operating conditions, emergency and contingency procedures, roles and responsibilities, and potential hazards (14 CFR 107.49(b)).
• When a visual observer is part of the crew, the three roles (remote pilot in command, the person flying and the observer) must keep in effective contact with one another throughout (14 CFR 107.33(a)).

AC 107-2A adds practical habits: work out before the flight how you will communicate, such as a handheld radio that won't distract anyone (AC 107-2A, para. A.2.5.2); brief the crew again when conditions change (AC 107-2A, para. A.2.5.1); and bring enough crew that no one becomes overloaded (AC 107-2A, para. A.2.5.3).

Flying solo, the same ideas become single-pilot resource management: managing all the resources available to you, before and during the flight (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 53). The study guide adds a warning for solo pilots: you act as your own quality control, and a tired pilot asked whether they are too tired to fly may still answer no (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 54). If the workload ever gets ahead of you, stop, think, slow down and prioritize (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 64).

Worked example: the sunrise job

You drive two hours to photograph a farm at sunrise for a client. You slept badly, and when you arrive the wind is stronger than the forecast said. No one else is there, so every decision is yours.

1. Perceive, with PAVE. Pilot: you are tired, and fatigue may not be apparent until serious errors are made (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 55). Aircraft: no change. Environment: the wind is not what was forecast. External pressure: the long drive and the client's deadline, the urge to get the job done (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 56).
2. Check the attitude. The thought "I've flown in worse, it'll be fine" is invulnerability. The antidote: it could happen to me.
3. Process, with CARE. Consequences: losing control in a gust near buildings and livestock. Alternatives: a short, low flight for the key shots, or a new date. Reality: you are tired and the wind is stronger than planned. External factors: the client's schedule.
4. Perform, with TEAM. You can't mitigate the fatigue on site, and together the risks aren't ones you can manage safely today, so you eliminate them: you call the client and rebook for the next calm morning.
5. Evaluate. You add two personal minimums, a rest rule before early jobs and a wind limit for this aircraft, so the decision is already made next time.

Practice these on the test

Decision-making questions sit in the Operations topic. Start with the free Part 107 operations sample questions, which include PAVE, IMSAFE and the 3P model, then take the free 20-question practice test, which draws on a wider pool of free questions with explanations. Keep the Part 107 glossary handy for the terms. Part 107 Complete ($39, one-time) includes a full lesson on decision-making and crew resource management, flashcards for the antidotes, and timed mock exams. Weather is often what forces the decision, so read how to read a METAR next.

Questions people ask

What are the five hazardous attitudes?

Anti-authority, impulsivity, invulnerability, macho and resignation. Their antidotes are: follow the rules, they are usually right; not so fast, think first; it could happen to me; taking chances is foolish; and I'm not helpless, I can make a difference (PHAK, p. 2-5).

What does PAVE stand for?

Pilot in command, Aircraft, enVironment and External pressures: the four categories of risk to check before a flight (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 55).

What are the steps of the DECIDE model?

Detect the problem, Estimate the need to react, Choose a course of action, Identify solutions, Do the necessary actions, and Evaluate the effect of the actions (PHAK, p. 2-18).

Does crew resource management apply if I fly alone?

The same ideas apply as single-pilot resource management, which means managing all the resources available to you before and during the flight (FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide, p. 53). With a visual observer, Part 107 also requires effective communication at all times (14 CFR 107.33).