Safety Oath

[abysmal]

At the meeting on Monday night we were given a new Wing Safety Oath and instruced to have all of the cadets recite it aloud, and that we were to do this at every meeting from now on.

Is this sort of thing done anywhere else??

[Mac]

MGen Wheless, just came out with a new Safety Program change that includes a new safety pledge that is suppose to be recited at every unit activity. more info can be found at the following link

National Commander Announces Safety Changes


hope this helps!

[abysmal]

MGen Wheless, just came out with a new Safety Program change that includes a new safety pledge that is suppose to be recited at every unit activity. more info can be found at the following link

National Commander Announces Safety Changes


hope this helps!

BINGO!

[Major_Chuck]

MGen Wheless has placed a major emphasis on the safety program and has a number of initiatives in the works.  Units that remain mishap free will receive special green safety attachments for their guidons while unit commanders who have mishap free units will be awarded Commanders Commendation Medals.

The new safety pledge is only the begining with a lot more rolling out.

-CC

[abysmal]

MGen Wheless has placed a major emphasis on the safety program and has a number of initiatives in the works.  Units that remain mishap free will receive special green safety attachments for their guidons while unit commanders who have mishap free units will be awarded Commanders Commendation Medals.

The new safety pledge is only the begining with a lot more rolling out.

-CC

Thanks for the heads up.
I have passed this along to all of the Cadets so they understand the background of whats going on.

[whatevah]

what safety pledge? 

I know safety is your thing Major, and you do a good job (seen your email announcements on the VA Wing email list), so please don't take offense, this isn't aimed at you.  Making a new fancy pledge isn't going to help anything.  for that matter, neither will a pudgy 40 year old senior member telling a 14 year old cadet "don't smoke".

I'd take a guess and say that less than 40% of the active members in CAP can recite the old pledge by heart. and, of those, how many of them can say it without rolling their eyes. if it's just something to say because you "have to", it's not going to change how you act.  Just because you say some cheesy pledge, doesn't mean you'll be safer than somebody who doesn't.  You're safe because you want to be, not because you recited some pledge.  And, honestly, I think the pledge does more to hurt the safety of CAP than it does to promote it.  It's really turned safety into a bit of a joke. 

And, it really stinks that if 2 cadets out of a 100 member unit are horsing around in the parking lot waiting for their parents and run into a wall or something, that it will keep their unit from being pointed out as being a "non-safe" unit.  And, for a tiny unit that barely has enough members to keeps its charter, and does have enough activities to have a chance for a real accident to happen, that unit Commander gets a medal.  Won't this do more to hurt the safety program, by not reporting minor accidents to keep your unit looking good, and not to be embarrassed at the next wing conference?

Yes, CAP members need to be safe, but we need to find a better way of doing it, rather than reciting a pledge and handing out shiny awards to units lucky enough not to have a cadet trip, or push a plane too far into the hangar.  I'm all for giving awards to the Safety Officers who run good safety programs, they certainly deserve it. My wing has a good safety officer, who regularly sends out a nice message to our wing email announcement list. A good safety program will do much more good than the pledge.

[flying Raptor]

I agree.

[BillB]

I don't see where the cadets have to recite the new safety pledge. It looks like it appies to seniors. And I agree that small units with few activities can have few problems with safety. And if the unit has no CAP vehicles or aircraft it makes life much simplier than a unit that's active and flies alot of missions or training flights. So you get a pretty ribbon for the unit guideon, great, but how many units have guideons? How can you compare the safety record of Montana compared to Florida, New York or Texas? Looks like this program needs alot more thought.

[whatevah]

technically, it says "any activity".  however, some people take that to mean ANYTHING that involves CAP, including weekly meetings.  I dunno if that was the intention or not.  Therein lies the problem.  You can't word things too specifically, so things won't be left out, but that can be taken to mean things you may not really mean.  Of course, there are people that will try and twist anything.

[Maj Ballard]

Maybe I read it wrong, but where does it say that the commander of a mishap free unit gets a ribbon? I read it to say the safety officer would get it.

[Major_Chuck]

Have you memorized the new safety pledge yet? 

As of Saturday morning it was being changed again.  Generals Wheless and Pineda directed some DDR folks to rewrite it and include DDR in it.  Supposably it is down to two sentences and easy to remember.

So....

[Schmidty06]

GAAAAHHHH!!!!  MAKE IT STOP!!!  Well, as long as it is down to two sentences.  Also, locally the squadron safety officer is requiring it to be said at every opening formation.  Maybe this is just me, but that is total and absolute garbage, but I'll do it, you bet I will.

[jimz]

I think the purpose of reciting it is to keep safety at the top of everyone's mind.  I am glad they are rewriting it, however, as the existing one is a little verbose.

[dwb]

Does reciting the pledge of allegiance make you less likely to defect, renounce your U.S. citizenship, and run off to another country?

No.

Nor does a safety pledge make you more safe.  It is a knee-jerk reaction to the fact that we've bent a lot of airplanes and killed some pilots in the past few years.

For each of the fatal CAP aircraft accidents of the past five years, I challenge anyone to make the case that reciting a pledge would have prevented those accidents.

So what can be done?

First, provide a better training/mentoring program for lower-echelon safety officers.  Wing SEs should be in regular contact with the group/squadron SEs, providing safety briefing suggestions, awareness bulletins, and training materials.  I have a great Wing SE, but his predecessor left much to be desired.

For pilots, recurring training is key.  The I'M SAFE checklist is more than a sheet of paper, it's a risk assessment that should be taught, encouraged, and utilized.  I can make the case that at least some of those fatal aircraft accidents could have been prevented if the pilot realized they shouldn't have been flying to begin with.

The safety pledge is, in my opinion, totally useless.  We need to identify the behavioral characteristics that result in safe behavior, then teach and encourage those.  Similarly, identify the behavioral characteristics that encourage unsafe behavior, and discourage those.

For example, being calculated and deliberate in what you do is a safe behavior.  Attention to detail, following sequences, double-checking your work, etc.  All these contribute to safe behavior.

The FAA has identified what they call "hazardous attitudes", and they're part of the private pilot ground exam.  I'm wondering how many CAP pilots can remember them all and know how to identify those behaviors in themselves or others?

BTW, those attitudes (lifted from AC 60-22):

a.  Antiauthority (don't tell me!).  This attitude is found in people who do not like anyone telling them what to do.  In a sense they are saying no one can tell me what to do.  They may be resentful of having someone tell them what to do or may regard rules, regulations, and procedures as silly or unnecessary. However, it is always your prerogative to question authority if you feel it is in error.

b.  Impulsivity (do something quickly!) is the attitude of people who frequently feel the need to do something - anything immediately.  They do not stop to think about what they are about to do, they do not select the best alternative, and they do the first thing that comes to mind.

c.  Invulnerability (it won't happen to me).  Many people feel that accidents happen to others, but never to them.  They know accidents can happen, and they know that anyone can be affected.  They never really feel or believe that they will be personally involved.  Pilots who think this way are more likely to take chances and increase risk.

d.  Macho (I can do it).  Pilots who are always trying to prove that they are better than anyone else are thinking I can do it - I'll show them.  Pilots with this type of attitude will try to prove themselves by taking risks in order to impress others. While this pattern is thought to be a male characteristic, women are equally susceptible.

e.  Resignation (what's the use?).  Pilots who think what's the use?  do not see themselves as being able to make a great deal of difference in what happens to them.  When things go well, the pilot is apt to think that's good luck.  When things go badly, the pilot may feel that someone is out to get me, or attribute it to bad luck.  The pilot will leave the action to others, for better or worse.  Sometimes, such pilots will even go along with unreasonable requests just to be a "nice guy."

This is the kind of thing that needs to be emphasized, and you can't get it from a safety pledge.

[whatevah]

very well said.

[Major_Chuck]

I don't feel that the Safety Pledge was ever intended to serve as a substitute for a good sound safety education program.  It's sole purpose in my book is only to serve as a tool to remind people to be concious of safety.

I think that dropping it to two lines to where people can actually remember it is a positive step. 

[dwb]

It's sole purpose in my book is only to serve as a tool to remind people to be conscious of safety.

Does it really?  I've only been present for a couple of recitals, but both times, most people were saying it whilst rolling their eyes.

It's not an accident prevention tool, it's not a training tool, and it's not a substitute for a good safety briefing.

I'm glad NHQ is paying more attention to safety, I'm glad it's a priority.  I just believe this one thing is misguided.