FAA Private Pilot Helicopter (PRH)Human FactorsMedium
A newly certificated helicopter pilot skips the pre-flight checklist, thinking, 'I've flown this helicopter a hundred times, nothing bad will happen to me.' Which hazardous attitude is this pilot demonstrating?
- AMacho
- BInvulnerability
- CResignation
- DAnti-authority
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Invulnerability
The belief that 'accidents happen to others, not to me' is the classic definition of the invulnerability hazardous attitude, which leads pilots to take unnecessary risks such as skipping checklists.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Macho involves trying to prove superiority to others, not simply personal risk denial.
- C. Resignation is feeling that nothing one does matters ('why bother?'), not overconfidence.
- D. Anti-authority is resentment of rules ('don't tell me what to do'), not personal risk denial.
Hazardous Attitude: Invulnerability
A hazardous attitude in which a pilot believes accidents happen to others but not to themselves, leading to unsafe risk-taking.
- Antidote thought: 'It could happen to me'
- One of five FAA-recognized hazardous attitudes
- Often leads to skipping checklists or ignoring warning signs
Memory trick: 'AIM-MR': Anti-authority, Invulnerability, Macho, Machismo(resignation)... remember AIIMR — 'Aim Right.'