Title: Enhancing helicopter aviation safety through human factors specialists collaboration: a case study for closing the organisational gap

Authors: Fabien Bernard; Nataly Jahchan

Addresses: Airbus Helicopters, Marignane, France; Arts et Métiers Institute of Technology, LAMPA, F-53810 Change, France ' Airbus Helicopters, Marignane, France

Abstract: Aviation safety stands as the paramount objective across all stakeholders in the aviation industry, including airlines, manufacturers and maintenance centres. Historically, safety enhancements primarily focused on cockpit design; however, in recent decades, the significance of maintenance activities has gained prominence. Human errors in maintenance have been identified as the second leading cause of aviation accidents, underscoring how urgent it is to improve maintenance practices. This publication delves into the potential solution of integrating human factors and ergonomics (HFE) dimensions, in the design process of new developments or upgrades to existing designs, to reduce errors and enhance maintenance activities. Through case studies, empirical data, and theoretical frameworks, this article demonstrates the effectiveness of the collaborative integration of HFE in aviation maintenance design. The results highlight how this approach fosters a culture of safety-conscious design and documentation, leading to improved maintenance practices, reduced errors, and ultimately safer aviation operations.

Keywords: aviation safety; design office; maintainability; maintenance; human factors; technical documentation; human error; collaborative integration.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHFE.2024.143253

International Journal of Human Factors and Ergonomics, 2024 Vol.11 No.3, pp.245 - 265

Received: 12 Jan 2024
Accepted: 05 Aug 2024
Published online: 11 Dec 2024 *

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