culture, communication and crashes

8/11/2019 Culture, Communication and Crashes

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Culture, Communication

and Crashes

Prepared by : Jignesh Rathod

Roll no : PGP/17/037Section : A


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Is there any Connection between

Airplane Crashes and Communication?

Or between Communication andCulture?? Lets find out


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Avianca Flight 52

January 25, 1990, Avianca Flight 52 took off

from Bogota, Colmbia to New York, USA via

Medellin, Columbia at 2.04PM local time

The Flight crew consisted Captain Laureano

Caviedes, First Office Mauricio Klotz and Flight

Engineer Matias Moyano.


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Lets see the conversations

between ATC - Klotz(First Officer)

and Caviedes(Captain) - Klotz after

the missed Approach.


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Air Trafic Control : Avianca 052 heavy New York,good evening, climb maintain 3,000.

Caviedes(to Klotz) : Advise him we dont have fuel

Klotz(To ATC) : Flight level 3,000 and ,uh, we arerunning out fuel sir.(Huhh.. Why not let him know upfront and clearlythat there is no fuel)

ATC: Okay, uh fly heading zero eight zero.[fewseconds pass.]


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Caviedes : Did you already advise that we don'thave fuel?

Klotz: Yes sir, I already advise him, hundred andeighty on the heading. We are going to maintainthree thousand feet, and he's going to get us back.

ATC: And Avianca 052 heavy,uh..i am gonna bring youabout fifteen miles north east and then turn you backonto the approach, is that fine with you and your fuel?

Klotz(To ATC) : I guess so, Thank you very much.(Seriously?? I guess so!! when there is no fuel in thetank??!! And Thank you very much???!!!)


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Caviedes : What did he say?

Klotz : The Guy is Angry.

*after few seconds+ ATC : Avianca 052 climbmaintain 3,000.

Klotz: Ah, negative sir, we just.. were running out of

fuel but okay 3,000 will be good.(What is wrong with Klotz!! No fuel and still

okay 3,000 will be good??)

ATC: okay, and you're number two for the approach.I just have to give you enough room so you can

make it without, ah, having to come out again.


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ATC: Okay, and you're number two for theapproach. I just have to give you enough room so

you can make it without, ah, having to come outagain.

Klotz : okay, we're number two and flying three six

zero now(Was Klotz feeling too much intimidated??)

ATC: Okay, turn left heading three one zero,sir.[..after few seconds and few technicalconversations..]


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Klotz : Avianca 052 we just uh, lost two enginesand uh, we need priority please.

(There again!! we need priority please whenyou lost two engines and will lose another twoin seconds and going to crash any second!!)

ATC : Avianca 052 turn left heading two five zerointercept the localizer.

Klotz(last words heard from Klotz at the ATC ) :Roger.


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Is Avianca and Klotz a one off case?

As you have seen, Klotz was not at all Assertive.

Avianca Flight 52 crashed near a village CoveNeck, New York, United States. Only 1 out of 9

crew members survived. Total 73 passengers andcrew died in this crash.

Is this the one off case? And why Klotz was notassertive when he knew they are going to crash?

Or ATC did not interpret him well? Lets checkanother case of completely different geographyand unrelated culture.


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Curious Crashes of Korean Air

By the year 1997, Korean Air had come under

tremendous criticism for having series of

crashes.

There were varying reasons given for all the

crashes but no remedy changed anything for

the Korean Air. (Back thenKorean Airlines)

Lets check one of the crashes happened was

on August 6, 1997


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Korean Air Flight 801

Korean Air Flight 801 departed from Seoul

Kompo International Airport at 8:53PM(local

time) to Reach to Guam(Island under US

Authority in Pacific Ocean) Crew was headed by Captain Park Yong-chul, who

had received a Flight Safety award for successfully

handling Boeing 747 Engine Failure. 40 year oldSong Kyung-ho was a First officer and 57 year old

Nam Suk-hoon was a Flight Engineer.


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The Snapshot of the

conversation in the cockpit ofKorean Air Flight 801


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CAPTAIN(Just after the take off): If this round-

trip is more than a nine-hour trip, we might get

a little something. With eight hours, we getnothing. Eight hours do not help us at all.... They

make us work to maximum, up to maximum.

Probably this way... hotel expenses will be savedfor cabin crews, and maximize the flight hours.

Anyway, they make us... work to

maximum...Eh... really... Sleepy..

FIRST OFFICER: Of course.


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[after long time] FIRST OFFICER: Don't youthink it rains more? In this area, here?

(What he really means is - Captain, You havemade us go by visual approach but in thisweather condition, we cant see anything)

[The flight is now hit with some turbulence butit has been able to get out of the turbulence..

Small turbulence formations are common inPacific


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Flight Engineer : Captain, the weather radar hashelped us a lot.

(Again, According to Korean CultureWhat Flightofficer really means in his head that the captainshould consider another upcoming turbulence asshown in the weather radar but tired Captain

under stress just acknowledged the FlightEngineer)

[ When coming closer to Guam, ATC warns the flight

801 that the Glideslope of the Guam Airport is outof service and hence they must make the visualapproach which is not extremely rare for pilots]


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[Once the flight approaches according to ATC

guidelines, they try and make the visual

approach for the Runway of Guam Airport.. ButCaptain does not feel necessity to brief the crew

about the plan or back up plan and crew does

not ask][Captain puts the landing gear down and flaps

open and weather turns again bad]

*1:48:48+ Captain : Wiper on(due to bad

weather)


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[1:41:59] First Officer : Not in Sight??

(Some investigators later argued that this question was also

meant to suggest captain to have a missed approach sincethe airport runway was not visible)

[1:42:19] First Officer ( and the sound alert for the height fromthe ground beeping 500ft) : Eh? Lets make a missed

approach.

(The First officer upgraded his speech from Query toSuggestion.. First Officers are trained to take control of theplane when they think that the captain is going definitely

wrong. But First officer choses just to suggest. Later,investigators found that had first officer taken control at thismoment, plane would never have crashed.)


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[1:41:20]First Officer: Not in Sight

[1:41:21]First Officer: Not in sight, missed

approach

[1:41:22]Flight Engineer : Go around.

[1:41:23]Captain : Go around.

[1:41:24]Ground Proximity warning system:

One hundred..fifty..

[1:41:25]Ground Proximity warning system:

3020..10*End of Recordning]


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A psuedo Korean Conversation

between Mr. Kim(an employee)and Mr. Kwacang(his boss)


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KWACANG: It's cold and I'm kind of hungry.

[MEANING: Why don't you buy a drink or something to eat?]

MR. KIM: How about having a glass of liquor?

[MEANING: I will buy liquor for you.]

KWACANG: It's okay. Don't bother.[MEANING: I will accept your offer if you repeat it.]

MR. KIM: You must be hungry. How about going out?

[MEANING: I insist upon treating you.]

KWACANG: Shall I do so?

[MEANING: I accept.]


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And The Effect of Culture

In Korean culture, the power distance betweentwo individuals matter a lot.

The person in lower social hierarchy hardly dareto give a command to the higher power authority,even when it is an invitation for a party from theperson lower in the hierarchy to the higher in thehierarchy.(as seen in the previous slide)

The same culture continued in the cockpits as

well, tiring the captain since he alone had tohandle the plane and holding back the co-pilotsince he dare not cross the line of the hierarchy.


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Transformation of Korean Air

After Korean Air flight 801 crash, Korean Airpresident was forced to resign. David Greenberg,who was retired from Delta Airlines was brought

in as a CEO . He changed the training of the pilots and

precisely pointed out the issues in cockpitculture of the Korean Air. After new trainings

and better understanding of Korean cultureamong pilots, Korean Air Transformed itself andnow is one of the safest Airlines in the world.


26/31

Why Klotz of Avianca 052 behaved

that way?

Similarly, Columbian culture was also hierarchical

in nature. They, like Koreans, could not overcome

the hierarchical differences, in this case, of NY

ATC who behaved as to be in command. To deal with the New York Air Traffic controller

one must put forward their idea directly and

firmly or else one must obey, due to culturalbackground, Klotz chose to obey. But that wasnt

the only reason.


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Why Klotz of Avianca 052 behaved

that way?

Priority in Spanish means Emergency itself. So when

Klotz asked for priority, he clearly thought that he

told the ATC to give him emergency landing.

Later, ATC testified that he took ..um, and we arerunning out fuel casually since all the flights which

are landing are supposed to be low on fuel and pilots

in bad weather passed such comments all the time

Had either ATC or Klotz clarified and simplified their

communication, Avainca would never have crashed!!


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For your Reference

Avianca Flight 52 ATC recording:

Guam ATC recording about KAL 801 crash:


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References

Malcolm GladwelOutliers [Chapter 7The

ethnic case of Airplane Crashes]

Transcripts of cockpit:

- Korean Air 801 :

http://www.tailstrike.com/060897.htm

- Avianca Flight 52:

http://www.tailstrike.com/250190.htm
http://www.tailstrike.com/060897.htmhttp://www.tailstrike.com/060897.htm


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References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_incid

ents_and_accidents

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_Fligh

t_801

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_5

2

DocumentryAir Crash Investigations S02E05:

Missing Over New York(Avianca Flight 52)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_incidents_and_accidentshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_incidents_and_accidentshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_Flight_801http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_Flight_801http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_52http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_52http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_52http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_52http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_Flight_801http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_Flight_801http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_incidents_and_accidentshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_incidents_and_accidents


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References

Documentary : Air Crash Investigation S04E06

Missed Approach

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3_nJYt

rO8(Documentary on Korean Air crashes)

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/busine

ss/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-

off-many-shun-lists.html(On David

Greenberg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3_nJYtrO8https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3_nJYtrO8http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/26/business/new-standards-mean-korean-air-is-coming-off-many-shun-lists.htmlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3_nJYtrO8https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aG3_nJYtrO8

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