NASA ASRS CALLBACK Issue 518 - Unusual Attitudes and Aircraft Upset

ASRS CALLBACK Issue 518 - March 2023, Unusual Attitudes and Aircraft Upsets (nasa.gov)
ASRS - Aviation Safety Reporting System (nasa.gov)

CALLBACK issue 518 shares unusual attitude incident reports, primarily from Part 91 (General Operations) that display Human Factors along with some external stimuli. Enjoy the narratives, the lessons, and the cause-and-effect connections.

An aircraft unusual attitude or upset can challenge and test a pilot’s ability to maintain aircraft control. The unusual attitude is generally unintentional, unanticipated, and may consist of extreme aircraft attitudes, and yet, it might not exceed the parameters to be termed an upset. During flight or training, an upset generally refers to an unintentional pitch attitude exceeding 25° nose up or 10o nose down, or a bank angle exceeding 45°, or being within those parameters and operating at an airspeed inappropriate for the conditions.

Incident factors include environmental conditions, wake vortex encounters, mechanical issues, and Human Factors such as confusion, distraction, fatigue, human-machine interface, physiological conditions, or situational awareness.

Recommended for GA pilots, Upset Prevention and Recovery Training (UPRT) allows becoming proficient in preventing, identifying and recovering from unusual attitudes and aircraft upsets.