Tag Archives: Pilot

Posted in Blog

CloudAhoy P-FOQA is released!

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[Lexington, MA] CloudAhoy is happy to announce the release of CloudAhoy P-FOQA™ (“P” is for Pilot), a pilot-centric Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) / Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) product for General Aviation. This release follows months of collaboration with early customers, and successfully addresses the needs of diverse types of General Aviation operations including flight training, owners/operators, charter, and fractional ownership.

Post-flight email

CloudAhoy’s vision is to increase aviation safety by using data-driven post-flight analysis. “Airlines saw a spectacular decrease in accident and fatality rates over the last 20 years; FOQA programs were instrumental in achieving this. In contrast, the General Aviation accident rate is still too high.” says Chuck Shavit, CloudAhoy’s Founder and CEO. “We created a new FOQA product designed from the ground up to cater to the unique needs of General Aviation.” 

CloudAhoy P-FOQA is pilot-centric, providing objective feedback to the pilot immediately after landing, including an optional post-flight email. At the organization level, flight safety personnel and leadership can use P-FOQA’s dashboard, updated in real time, for an overall view to monitor trends and adherence to safety standards and SOPs. They may elect to receive automatic alerts upon detection of possible safety events. 

P-FOQA is built on the same underlying analysis technology as CloudAhoy’s post-flight debrief, which has been developed for over a decade. This mature and robust technology has been enhanced for efficient data aggregation, providing a natural path between P-FOQA and debrief, thus between aggregated data and diving down into details of a flight for learning and investigating.

Over the past year CloudAhoy worked with select customers who formed a P-FOQA Steering Group: Citation Jet Pilots Association (CJP),  Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s (ERAU) College of Aviation at Daytona Beach FL, Tidal Aviation, Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF), Jet It, and United Aviate Academy. The product we are releasing has been used (in beta) since June 2022, and reflects the experience, insight, and wisdom of these industry leaders. 

P-FOQA is highly configurable. Security and privacy are carefully managed. Flight data is anonymized; organizations can authorize specific people to access detailed information about the flights, customizing parameters to fit the organization’s needs and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Easy customization enables adjusting to the needs, level of experience, and type of aircraft. 

For data acquisition, CloudAhoy partners with a growing number of cost-effective providers to enable automatic upload of rich and accurate flight data immediately after a flight.

CloudAhoy P-FOQA is affordable, making it a practical solution for any organization. “It is extremely satisfying to see how each organization is adapting it to their own needs,” says Chuck Shavit. “P-FOQA is intuitive to use. I believe that we created a product valuable for experienced pilots of high performance aircraft, beginner student pilots, and all the levels in between.” Helping pilots fly better and safer has been the fuel driving CloudAhoy from inception.

From the P-FOQA Steering Group: 

Citation Jet Pilots Association (CJP), (link) – an owner pilot association of Textron Aviation Citation aircraft  

Charlie Precourt, CJP Safety Committee Chair and four-time NASA space shuttle astronaut: 

“CJP’s Safety and Education Foundation has been striving to bring the tremendous success of airline FOQA to the single pilot in business aircraft. Working with CloudAhoy, we have been able to create a CJP-FOQA℠ program, allowing each pilot to benefit from the group trends while also tracking their own flight outcomes for continuous improvement and safety, a first of its kind capability in the FOQA world.”

ERAU College of Aviation at Daytona Beach, FL, (link) the world’s largest, most comprehensive institution specializing in aviation, aviation business, aerospace, engineering and STEM-related degree programs

Bob Joyce, Director of Aviation Safety: 

 “…Flight data acquisition, analysis, and visualization are vital components of our IS-BAO Stage 3 registered safety management system…” 

Paul Cairns, Assistant Chief Flight Instructor: 

“The CloudAhoy P-FOQA provides an easy way to identify performance trends from aggregate flight data for validating training and standardization effectiveness.”

Tidal Aviation, (link) – a partner of Cirrus Aircraft as a Platinum Training and Service Center, based in Houston 

Reid Nelson, President: 

“CloudAhoy has been a powerful tool in our toolbox for years, but P-FOQA has become a clear game-changing advantage for us.”

Jim Ratliff, Chief Instructor: 

“We have been able to rethink our own training process…The AI has enabled us to, in literally minutes, do what takes even large organized flight schools dozens of labor hours per week to do.” 

Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF), (link) – a non-profit organization dedicated to leading and supporting the advancement of the highest aviation safety standards for business, charter and fractional ownership 

Bryan Burns, President:

“For a long time, FDM programs have been accessible mostly to medium-to-large cabin aircraft operators…Now we can provide the benefits of FDM at a much lower cost point.”

Jet It, (link) – a private aviation company dedicated to providing more time and value to owners with their days-based fractional-ownership model

Jason Greenleaf, Director of Safety: 

“There’s real value in being able to visualize our flight crew performance and trends in the aggregate while simultaneously providing our pilots a detailed flight debrief so they can continuously refine their skills.”

United Aviate Academy, (link) – a flight training academy owned by United Airlines addressing the pilot shortage and aiming to diversify the pilot population

Ray Vester, Director, Safety, Security and Compliance: 

“P-FOQA is a powerful tool for examining our training flights, performing flight safety investigations and analyzing aircraft maintenance events.”  

About CloudAhoy: 

CloudAhoy’s mission is to increase aviation safety and enhance pilots’ proficiency through data-driven flight analysis. CloudAhoy’s debrief product is used by thousands of pilots, students, and instructors, as well as the military. In 2022 CloudAhoy introduced a Flight Operations Quality Assurance product  – P-FOQA. P-FOQA (“P” is for Pilot) is pilot-centric, and targeted at General Aviation, including flight training. CloudAhoy is a leader in post-flight analysis and debriefing.  www.cloudahoy.com/p-foqa

 

Additional information about data acquisition: 

AirSync: https://www.air-sync.com/
Textron LinxUs FDM: https://txtav.com/service/linxus-fdm

 

Posted in Blog

Citation Jet Pilots Association Introduces Partnership with CloudAhoy to bring CJP-FOQA to CJP Members

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We are happy to share this announcement from Citation Jet Pilots Association (CJP):

CJP HEADQUARTERS, ENTERPRISE, FL, (FEBRUARY 23, 2023) – Citation Jet Pilots Association (CJP) and CloudAhoy, Inc. are pleased to announce their partnership to bring a Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) program to CJP’s 1,400+ members. CJP-FOQA℠, powered by CloudAhoy’s new P-FOQA™ product, combines CJP’s dedication to flight safety with P-FOQA, a pilot-centric FOQA solution designed for General Aviation. It is the fruit of three years of collaboration, and driven by the combined visions of Charlie Precourt, CJP Safety Committee Chair, and CloudAhoy, to use data-driven analysis to improve flight safety.

“CJP’s Safety and Education Foundation has been striving to bring the tremendous success of airline FOQA to the single pilot in business aircraft, but we recognized the airlines’ FOQA systems aggregate flight trends without focusing on individual pilot results,” Charlie explains. “Working with CloudAhoy, we have been able to create a program that aggregates trend data like the airlines, but importantly adds a pilot-oriented feedback report immediately after each flight. This allows each pilot in CJP-FOQA to learn from the group trends while also tracking their own flight outcomes for continuous improvement and safety – a first of its kind capability in the FOQA world.”

With CJP-FOQA, pilots are provided with objective feedback immediately after every flight via email. This feedback includes how well pilots are performing on stabilized approaches, adhering to FARs and SOPs, and their overall safety performance, as well as links to a detailed debrief showing the pilot graphs, flight analysis, and 3D visualizations, including HUD views. Members can also view a dashboard on CJP’s website which displays anonymized aggregated flight data across the organization. This data can be used to focus and improve the simulator training that members receive, thus improving the training’s relevance to their real world operations.

“CJP-FOQA is another industry-leading example of the CJP Safety & Education Foundation’s safety initiatives.  We are pleased to partner with CloudAhoy and utilize the program to increase the safety of the CJP Members,” states Trent J. Corcia, CJP CEO.

CJP is consistently recognized for their dedication to flight safety. For example, the Safe to Land℠ Initiative resulted in new SOPs for stabilized approaches, landing parameters, and go-around criteria. The Gold Standard Safety Program awards rigorous training and preparedness. In addition, there have been no accidents over the past two and a half years among member operators.

CloudAhoy brought P-FOQA to market to offer a cost-effective solution for General Aviation and improve safety outcomes in the segment of the market with the highest accident rate. “FOQA technology had a phenomenal success in reducing airlines’ accident and fatality rates” said Chuck Shavit, founder and CEO of CloudAhoy, “but doing so in General Aviation requires a radically different approach. General Aviation FOQA must be pilot-centric, provide immediate feedback, and be simple and accessible to non-experts. Our close collaboration with CJP over the past three years has been instrumental in creating P-FOQA, and we are proud to work with them.” 

In General Aviation, the high cost of entry, including retrofitting data acquisition hardware, has been a barrier to FOQA adoption. As inexpensive flight data acquisition devices such as AirSync and Textron’s LinxUs FDM solutions come on the market, paired with the flight data analysis software from CloudAhoy, widespread FO(miQA adoption is now attainable.

CJP members interested in participating in this program can sign up at www.cloudahoy.com/cjp and then click “Connect With Us Now.”

About CloudAhoy:

CloudAhoy’s mission is to increase aviation safety and enhance pilots’ proficiency through data-driven flight analysis. CloudAhoy’s debrief product is used by thousands of pilots, students, and instructors, as well as the military. In 2022 CloudAhoy introduced a Flight Operations Quality Assurance product  – P-FOQA. P-FOQA (“P” is for Pilot) is pilot-centric, and targeted at General Aviation Part 135 and Part 91 operators, as well as flight training. Learn more at www.cloudahoy.com/p-foqa.

About CJP:

The Citation Jet Pilots Owner Pilot Association (CJP) is the only member organization dedicated to the ownership and operation of the Cessna Citation family of jets. Open to anyone who owns, flies or supports a Citation, the organization offers a wide range of safety, advocacy, interaction and philanthropic benefits all with the common goal of helping each member get the most out of their aircraft. The CJP Safety and Education Foundation is dedicated to engaging with CJP Members on methods for operating their aircraft in the safest possible manner and developing safety-related resources for Citation pilots and others in the industry. Learn more at http://www.citationjetpilots.com/about and www.citationjetpilots.com/safety.

 

Additional information about data acquisition: 

AirSync: https://www.air-sync.com/

Textron LinxUs FDM: https://txtav.com/service/linxus-fdm

Posted in Blog

Safety Events, Trends, and more – PREVIEW

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During the last year we have been focused on adding capabilities to CloudAhoy with an emphasis on safety.  The capabilities we’ve worked on include  automatically detecting unsafe moments in flights and analysis of aggregated data to identify trends.

The work is ongoing, and not yet released. We are working closely with our partners – flight schools, owners and operators – to create a valuable product that fits into their workflow. We are at the point that we can share some examples and what’s coming next.

 

Safety events – Automatically Detected

Example – Unsafe base-to-final turn: The pilot overshot the turn to final, and corrected it by making a turn with a steep bank.

  • CloudAhoy detected the steep angle of the turn back to the final and annotated it in the debrief.

 

Example – Cause and effect: A pilot came in 16 knots too fast, landed long, and used almost the entire runway (and probably slammed on the brakes).

  • CloudAhoy detected 2 safety events: airspeed too high  at 50’AGL, and being too fast during rollout  approaching the end of the runway.

Example – Safety event and decision making: The pilot came in too high on final approach, then tried to correct with an excessive sink rate. The result was an unstable approach.

  • CloudAhoy detected a safety event: sink-rate too high at 515′ AGL and at 133′ AGL. The pilot decided to go around (the red segment) – which was the safe thing to do!

 

What General Aviation Can Learn from the Airlines about Safety

“You can’t improve what you don’t measure.” [– Peter Drucker]

Over the past 20 years, the Airlines’ accident and fatality rate had dropped significantly. One of the main contributing reasons for it is that the Airlines implemented safety programs – known as Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) and FDM (Flight Data Monitoring). The airlines implemented monitoring and measuring techniques to understand flight safety, and translated that into actions to improve safety, such as training and Standard Operations Procedures. As a result accidents and fatality rates dramatically decreased.  

Unfortunately, in General Aviation and in Business Aviation the accidents and fatality rates are stagnant.  We believe it’s time to bring the techniques used by the airlines to every GA pilot – to save costs, and most importantly – life. Detection of safety events is a natural progression of CloudAhoy.

Source:  General aviation trends in charts—2021 update,
OCTOBER 4, 2021/ by JOHN ZIMMERMAN 

Looking at trends can be a good way to identify bad habits and unsafe behavior.  As an example, the following screenshot shows a CloudAhoy histogram of the approach speed across hundreds of flights during a certain time period. CloudAhoy compares the Indicated Airspeed in each approach to the desired speed (Vref). The vast majority of the approaches were safe, “in the green”. Yellow and pink colors indicate flights that were too slow or too fast.

Introducing CloudAhoy P-FOQA / FDM
“P” is for Pilot 

CloudAhoy’s P-FOQA is pilot-centric (hence the “P”).  

P-FOQA is tailored for General Aviation and is modeled after similar programs used by the airline industry. It is designed for business aviation, flight training, owners/operators, and fleet managers.  The safety events – such as described above – are automatically detected by CloudAhoy and presented on a dashboard. 

CloudAhoy’s P-FOQA is using the same underlying technology as CloudAhoy’s post-flight Debrief products, with the additional capability to identify safety events, to analyze and visualize aggregated data, and to notify pilots, safety personnel, and fleet managers of safety events. The integration with CloudAhoy Debrief provides an efficient way to identify the root cause of safety events, increase pilots’ safety awareness, facilitate learning and improvements. This leads to becoming a better and safer pilot.

P-FOQA design goals:

  • Pilot centric  
  • Immediate reports and alerts
  • Secure and protecting privacy
  • Anonymized reports to designated safety personnel
  • Configurable and customizable

CloudAhoy P-FOQA is now in Beta, with a selected  group of customers. 

Stop by our booth to see more. 

 

 

Posted in Blog

What is “The Killing Zone” After Flight Training?

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Guest blog by Rod Rakic

You might be surprised that a pilot’s first time alone without a flight instructor on board is not statistically their most dangerous flight.

Sometimes a pilot’s most dangerous flying comes later, in what some call “The Killing Zone.” The good news is, today, most pilots already have tools in their flight bag that can help them fly safer and avoid becoming yet another statistic.

For many, the concept of The Killing Zone seems counterintuitive. It’s simpler to imagine that the first time we solo an airplane would naturally be the most dangerous. Then, most would guess, safety records would simply get better as we log more flight time.

Still, many pilots may have heard the old saying that a pilot’s risk of a mishap rises after a couple hundred hours in the cockpit. To some extent, that’s borne out by the statistics. Yet many pilots who hear this bit of lore secondhand can’t quite pinpoint where they even heard of the idea. When does the risk tend to increase? How can they better manage the increased risks? It turns out that the data demonstrates that low-time pilots are relatively safe while in the training environment, but then often initially begin to exhibit habits that lead to airplane accidents after building a bit of experience. Fortunately, the data also shows us that logging additional flight experience over the long term does increase safety.

“The Killing Zone: How & Why Pilots Die” by Paul A. Craig was initially published in 1999 and then updated with a second edition in 2013. Craig explains, “…the greatest number of accidents took place when a private or student pilot had between 50 and 350 total flight hours—that span the Killing Zone.” Craig was the first to highlight why the statistics pointed out this trend, but more importantly, he offered specific advice on reducing the risks led by the accident data. Each chapter unpacks a different topic, such as continuing VFR into IFR conditions, maneuvering flight, takeoff and climb, etc.

chart of total fatal accidents vs. flight hours of pilot

(Craig, The Killing Zone: How & Why Pilots Die, 2013)

Other researchers have looked closely at the idea of The Killing Zone, and even rigorous statistical examination of data by the FAA validated the phenomenon. For example, William R. Knecht, at the FAA’s Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, took a close look at the numbers in his 2015 paper, “Predicting Accident Rates From General Aviation Pilot Total Flight Hours.” He summarized, “Consistent with our intuition and the frequency count studies, these models suggest that a “killing zone” indeed exists. Accident rates seem to increase for GA pilots early in their post-certification careers, reaching a peak, and then declining with greater flight experience.”

It’s not all doom and gloom, as John Zimmerman at Air Facts Journal points out in “GA safety trends: what should we worry about?” (2020). Zimmerman highlights, “The good news is that general aviation flying is getting safer. Accidents through 2018 are essentially flat over the preceding four years: about 1200 accidents per year and 200 fatal accidents per year. However, the rate of accidents, which adjusts for hours flown, was down 13% over the last five years.”

 

Pilot-related Accident Type Chart

(Zimmerman, Air Facts, 2020)

Zimmerman clarifies where we should be looking for risk and where bad habits are most likely to strike: “Looking at 2018 statistics, the first thing that stands out is landing accidents: 47% of pilot-related accidents are in this phase. Fortunately, 99% of these are not fatal, but they destroy airplanes, shatter confidence, and increase insurance premiums for the rest of us.”

Zimmerman continues, “By contrast, takeoff accidents are three times less common than landing accidents but over 20 times more likely to be fatal. This is statistically the most dangerous phase of flight (according to 2018 data) because there’s simply no margin for error and no chance to try again.”

Justifiably much of our effort, practice, and attention is focused on landings. But, let’s again follow the data and keep Zimmerman’s reminder top of mind: “Takeoff accidents deserve far more attention than the dreaded base-to-final turn, at least according to the NTSB reports.” 

So how can we put statistics and analysis from Craig, Knecht, and Zimmerman to work in the cockpit? How can pilots escape The Killing Zone? Today, we often have a wealth of data streaming into our aircraft via GPS, ADS-B, cellular data connections, or cockpit WiFi. Yet let’s not ignore the fantastic amount of data that can stream out of the cockpit too. Pilots can put that data to work, whether from integrated flight decks like the G1000 or even their Electronic Flight Bag running on an iPad. Using services like CloudAhoy offers visibility into poor habits and performance that can lead to accidents. Some of the risks pilots face in The Killing Zone can be identified by measuring and reviewing pilot performance.

Here’s an example of how a CloudAhoy debrief can support flight safety. This TBM 900 pilot did a fine job maintaining a consistent airspeed on this visual approach to runway 20R at KSNA. Unfortunately, that speed was consistently slow. The red shaded area in this CloudAhoy debrief on the right highlights that the pilot flew this approach well below the recommended vREF speed (vREF speed is noted by the dashed blue line), decreasing the pilot’s expected safety margins. The CloudAhoy debrief also highlights how getting low on the glide path allowed the sink rate to get away from him, building to over 1,000 feet per minute. It’s an unstable approach, and we know that’s the sort of habit that leads to bending metal.Pilots have a steep learning curve to climb from that first adrenaline-filled solo flight to becoming competent and experienced aviators. The adoption and use of the right tools, like CloudAhoy’s post-flight debrief, can help pilots consistently review performance and uncover and address bad habits before they affect flight safety.