Given some option awareness, a safe flight requires linking the decisions with actions. In a general sense there are six ways in which we many execute any action:
- Do
- No Do
- Under Do
- Over Do
- Early Do
- Late Do
Practice is usually the key to action, however our actions may be influenced by a number of factors including skill, situational awareness, option awareness, stress, attitudes, and planning. It is also important that we realize that it may be appropriate to decide to do nothing.
Also important in action awareness is the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid!) principle. Pilots should get used to doing the most economical, simplest actions to return to the normal state. While there may bedelight in doing complicated actions well, these should at the very least be pre-planned and not impulsive acts. The basis for many creative incidents and accidents is the extra step. With a complex activity it is easy to slip up on some detail when the period for planning is short. A prime example of this is aerobatics displays. Even when they are carefully pre-planned, unexpected details during performances often lead to poor outcomes. The time becomes too short to analyse the details properly and the devil is found.
For students, actions can be categorized as ones that should be done immediately, and others that can be deferred. If our option assessment dictates that the aircraft is out of control, then it is important to act quickly. This is the realm of training automatic reactions. On the other hand if actions can be deferred, then the decision is whether delaying will make things better or worse. If delaying entering the circuit allows for a better decision about the runway to use, then this may be the best action. Sometimes it is important to leave time to make decisions. On the other hand, closed tasks such as pre-landing checks are best done sooner rather than later.
In summary, action awareness relies on students understanding whether or not automatic reaction is required, and then developing an appreciation of what other action is appropriate past this point.