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1. Type of plans
2. Time of accident (day or night)
3. Flight reference (instrument, contact or simulated instrument)
4. Phase of flight at the time of accident
5. Description of the circumstances leading up to or surrounding the accident
6. Description of the behavior of the pilot prior to or during the accident

Not all of the accident reports contained all of the above information, although in general it was possible to obtain it from most of the reports. Where an accident report contained insufficient data or when it was apparent that not enough evidence had been gathered to determine what role of the pilot had been, such records were not used in this study.   

3. The Data Collected.  A total of 185 domestic accidents of scheduled commercial airline pilots was extracted from the Civil Aeronautics Board files.  Of these 64 were discarded because of insufficient data or insufficient evidence pertaining to the behavior of the pilot, leaving a total of 121 accidents which were used.

The Study of Airline Company Personnel Files

1. Aims.  A thorough analysis of the records maintained by the airline companies on their pilots was thought to be another source of information which would help accomplish several of the main objectives of the project.  First, more could be learned about the critical requirements of the airline pilot through analysis of reasons for the elimination of airline pilot trainees and through a comparison of the records of eliminated and successful airline pilots.  In addition, present methods of selecting pilot applicants could be evaluated from the standpoint of the degree to which the established company requirements for applicants predicted the successful completion of their training.  Finally, present methods of evaluation could be studied from the standpoint of the degree to which they differentiated the superior pilots from those not as proficient. 

2. Procedures Used.  Each airline company maintains some kind of personnel record for each pilot presently employed and for each pilot hired and subsequently eliminated.  From one company, permission was obtained to make a preliminary investigation of their files and to carry out a pilot study of the materials contained in these records.  From this study it was learned what records were kept and how they were kept.  On the basis of what was learned, standardized procedures were developed for extending this study to other airlines, A standardized form was prepared on which the desired company file data were to be recorded.  This form, called the "Company File Report Form," is reproduced as Appendix 9.  The following kinds of information were extracted from the files of each pilot:

   1. Date of birth
   2. Marital status
   3. Education
   4. Date of employment
   5. Date of termination (eliminated pilots)