Most accidents in aviation have occurred due to human error. Human factors that can lead to errors include fatigue, poor judgment, or even a lack of proper training (Federal Aviation Administration, n.d.). Salas and Maurino’s (2010) research found that human errors caused an increase in incidents and accidents in the skies. When there were aircraft accidents, evidence found that there was a focus on technical skills, but a lack of training in teamwork among aviation professionals.
Aircraft mechanics work together as a team to accomplish aircraft washes. Many times, it takes a crew the size of at least four mechanics a total of five hours to wash the aircraft (Klassen & Roberge, 2008). The wash consists of first prepping the aircraft. The prep includes covering the engines with plugs and making sure that the air data surfaces do not get water in them (Trachte, 2014). The aircraft is then scrubbed to remove any debris from the surface much like a hand carwash. Once the wash is complete, the aircraft is inspected for any signs of corrosion or damage. Aircraft washes are important scheduled maintenance that helps prevent corrosion (Klassen & Roberge, 2008).
Here is a video by the United States Air Force showing how aircraft maintainers wash an F-22.
What could happen if the team made errors in a routine wash? In May of 2020, an F-22 crashed near Eglin Air Force Base, Florida (Cohen, 2021). The investigation found that there were multiple human errors responsible for this accident. The F-22 pilot and aircraft maintainers both made errors leading up to the event. The aircraft was washed just two days before the accident for its’ monthly wash (Cohen, 2021). The investigation found that the lead maintainer for the wash was not on site until the final inspection. It was also found that a piece of tape from the wash was not removed from an air data surface (Cohen, 2021). The F-22 alerted the pilot to a flight control system warning while on the runway, but the pilot ignored the warning and took off anyway instead of taxiing back to chocks for a ground abort (Cohen, 2021).
If the pilot had not ignored the warning, the piece of tape likely causing the flight control system warning might have been found. The lack of attention to detail by the wash team also contributed to human errors. Finally, the launch crew also should have noticed the tape during the pre-flight and pre-inspection walk around in a perfect world. However, fatigue and other factors may have affected judgment and attention to detail leading up to the aircraft accident. Luckily, the pilot was able to eject safely and there were no injuries.
References
Cohen, R. (2021, January 20). Human error, tech glitches and tape caused May 2020 F-22 crash. Air Force Times. https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2022/01/20/human-error-tech-glitches-and-tape-caused-may-2020-f-22-crash/
Federal Aviation Administration. (n.d.). Human Factors in Aviation Maintenance. United States Department of Transportation. https://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/maintenance_hf
Klassen, R., & Roberge, P. (2008, September). Optimising aircraft wash intervals from maintenance records. Corrosion Engineering, Science, and Technology, 43(3), 236-240. http://ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/optimising-aircraft-wash-intervals-maintenance/docview/227133134/se-2
Salas, E., & Maurino, D. (2010, January 10). Human factors in aviation. Elsevier Science & Technology. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/erau/detail.action?docID=534983&pq-origsite=primo
Trachte, S. (2014, February 5). Footage of an F-22 wash and maintenance. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TyHjkJGoMuk
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