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A review of existing pilot training in the area of in-flight icing reveals many inadequacies. Much of the icing “knowledge” in the pilot community is partial, false, or of no use in making tactical decisions in flight. Complete and accurate information about the limitations of ice protection systems on individual aircraft is not sufficiently communicated to the piloting community. Regulatory guidance on what in-flight icing conditions are prohibited is sufficiently vague so as to allow intentional operations in hazardous conditions. In the absence of accurate icing information pilots often rely on their perspective of past icing encounters which may not be accurate. Wrongly interpreted experiences can reinforce false assumptions about icing. Truly effective in-flight icing training must be operationally oriented and help the student to assess immediate hazards and select between tactical options.

Data from 1999 regarding events involving smoke, fumes, and in-flight fire was analyzed. It suggests that these events are sometimes unreported or under-reported. Many of these events resulted in unscheduled landings. Fire or high temperature events frequently occur in areas of the aircraft that present a high hazard potential and indicates that current designs and procedures do not give the crew the ability to locate the source of the smoke. There is a need for further effort in the areas of incident data collection, improved prevention efforts, and means to quickly detect and isolate the ignition sources involved.

The conversion from the labor-intensive air traffic control system of today to the virtually completely automated system of tomorrow introduces many benefits, but there are also potential hazards. A concept - “distributed monitoring” - is introduced which will make this transition safer and more efficient. Through this concept, the pilot will play a key role in his operation within the ATC system aided by an on-board cockpit display of traffic information.