This document analyzes intuitive and sophisticated aviation systems, and proposes that a resilience system combining both approaches is best. It notes intuitive systems are easy to learn but unstable, while sophisticated systems are stable but complex. A resilience system allows organizations to tailor the approach based on factors like employee experience levels and workload. Large established groups could rely more on sophisticated systems, while new airlines may prefer intuitive systems, but all benefit from a balanced resilience model.

1. Abstract
This report analyzed the advantages and weakness for both intuitive and sophisticated
systems and made compare of them. Finally, this report claimed that the resilience
system which mixed intuitive and sophisticated system together is a better system
which could suit for every person comes from different background and has different
level of education.
1.0 Introduction
(Not include the aircraft with 18 or less people aboard, military aircraft, private aircraft or
helicopters.)
Source: PlaneCrashInfo.com database <http://www.planecrashinfo.com/cause.htm>
The safety of aviation is the most important issue at present and need to be put at
the top no matter world-wide organization or small airline companies. From the
Figure 1.1, it could be seen that over half of the serious accident was caused by
human errors. Therefore, a perfect aviation system with which is suit for all of the
staff to work is quite necessary to make the aircraft reach the safe level. This report
49%
7%
12%
22%
9%
1%
Figure 1.1: World-wide total flightfatal accident
1950 - 2010
pilot error
other human error
weather
mechanical failure
sabotage
others

2. will analysis the advantages and weaknesses for both intuitive and sophisticated
systems and discuss which of these two is better. Finally, the resilience system
which could help people cope with complexity under pressure to achieve success
(Hollnagel, et al., 2006) will be introduced.
2.0 Intuitive and sophisticated system
2.1 Intuitive system
The intuitive system is a simple system which is easy and quickly for people
(including non-skilled and less-skilled people) to get used to working inside
with a short and simple training. With the high-tech equipment, the work
even the judgment could be completed or simplified by the computer which
makes the information display more intuitive to the engineer.
2.1.1 Advantages
 Easy to learn
With the intuitive system, the novice could get into work without
any expert trouble. They do not need to learn plenty of professional
knowledge which makes the non-skilled people could begin to work
after a short and simple training. In addition, because the novice is
lack of experience and afraid of making mistakes in a strange
environment, they cannot work proficiently as the experienced
workers do. Thus, an intuitive work system could make them work
more efficient.
 Less mistake for novice

3. People have more frequency to make mistakes if they are not
familiar with their work and the work is quite complex. Thus, a
simple and intuitive system could avoid many mistakes which are
made by the novice.
 Work with less stress
More stress will lead to people make more mistakes. Therefore, a
simple system makes people could work with a comfortable
environment and makes them less frequency to make mistakes.
 Easy to manage and cost less
The simple system only needs several managers and the managers
do not need to be quite professional because this system does not
need much expert knowledge to keep it working. In addition, a
simple management system will also cost less to keep it function.
2.1.2 Weaknesses
 Unstable system
The simple system is unstable because it is lack of method to deal
with the emergency accident. For example, the urban ecosystem is
the simplest system on the earth comparing with the tropical rain-
forest ecosystem and Forest Ecosystem. The urban ecosystem does
not have Self-healing capability. Without the human’s maintenance,
the urban ecosystem could be destroyed very quickly because the
urban system is too simple and too rely on human. If human go

4. wrong, the system will totally change, even disappear. Same with
the intuitive system, a small emergency event may cause the whole
system change and a small error may cause the whole system
paralysis. In addition, the intuitive system is difficult to improve
because the system is quite simple. Even a small change may lead
to the entire system change, even out of control.
 Lack of future view
The intuitive system does not carry much professional knowledge
which makes it lack of the ability to process information. Therefore,
the intuitive system can hardly discover and protect the potential
errors with the information it got. For example, when an accident
happens, with the intuitive system, people could only find the
intuitive reason causing the accident, but not the potential reasons.
Most major accidents, however, are due to complex concurrences of
multiple factors, some of which have no apparent a priori relations.
(Hollnagel, et al., 2006) Thus, the accident may happen again
because they did not find the whole fundamental reasons for the
accident. In addition, because the intuitive system is lack of analysis
ability, people can only use this system to solve problems, but
cannot protect potential errors happening.
 Easy cause misunderstanding
In order to help novice people to get into work quickly, the intuitive

5. system does not have much expert and professional language which
could explain the instruction without misunderstanding. Therefore,
communication misunderstanding will occur more often in intuitive
system and the misunderstanding may lead to serious accidents
happening. In March 27, 1977, the pilot of KLM 4805
misunderstood the air-control tower’s instruction, took off with full-
fuel tanks and crashed with another aircraft which had just landing
and had not got out of the runway. Almost all of the passengers on
these two aircrafts had been killed because of the fire came from the
full-fuel tanks. (Air Crash Investigation, 2003-present) Therefore,
simple language is easily cause misunderstanding and serious
accidents.
2.2 Sophisticated system
The sophisticated system is designed depending on the professional view.
This system is more professional and complex. People need have plenty of
expert knowledge to well work in it.
2.2.1 Advantages
 Stable system
The sophisticated system is quite stable because it has a complete
structure which could deal with almost every kind of emergency
events which is just like the tropical rain-forest ecosystem. The
tropical rain-forest ecosystem is a stable system which could hardly
to be destroy, because it has a perfect ecological chain and self-

6. repairing capability which could easily cover the emergency event,
such as small fires, small earthquake and thunderstorm. Therefore,
the sophisticated system could calm response to any accident and
will not let the emergency event affect the whole system. In addition,
changes occur continuously throughout a system’s lifetime
(Hollnagel, et al., 2006), and the sophisticated system could be
improved easily and the changes will not lead to the property change
for the entire system.
 Less error and more safe
The sophisticated system has a strong ability of information analysis
which could help the manager control the whole system’s trend. At
the same time, the strong ability of information analysis could also
help the system discover the potential errors easily. Additional with
the complete accident investigation system, the sophisticated system
could be safer because, except the mistakes have happened, the
system could protect many potential errors happening. (Hollnagel,
et al., 2006)
 Less misunderstanding with professional language
The professional language has already been tested for many years
and almost cannot make any misunderstanding, even the people
come from different countries and cultures. For example, the pilot
of Colombian aviation 52 used unprofessional words ‘priority’, not

7. ‘emergency’ when they were nearly run-out of fuel which lead to
the aircraft run out of fuel and made a serious air crash. (Air Crash
Investigation, 2003-present) This accident could be avoided if the
pilot used professional language to communicate with air-control
tower. Therefore, professional system with professional language
could reduce the misunderstanding of the information which lead to
less air crash.
2.2.2 Weaknesses
 Too complex for novice
The sophisticated system is too complex for novice to study. The
novice need to learn much professional knowledge before they get
to work. In addition, even they have got enough knowledge, because
they are lack of experience, the novice still cannot work efficient
and will make many mistakes.
 Need a complete and experienced management team
The sophisticated system is a complete and complex system which
need an experienced management team or a complete organization
to operate. Therefore, operating a sophisticated system will need a
long time to build the system and cost much money.
 Easy cause work fatigue
Human’s brain cannot keep working at full capacity for whole days.
Therefore, work in the sophisticated system for a long time will

8. make people fatigue, especially for the novice. Working with fatigue
has high risk and will lead to serious problems, such as reduced
communication skills, reduced reaction time, failure to respond to
changes in surroundings or information provided and increased
accident rates (CCOHS, 2012). It will make the system safety
decrease great.
3.0 Resilience system
With the analysis of both intuitive and sophisticated systems, it could be seen that
both of those two systems could give a positive response to aviation safety.
However, the sophisticated system is too complex in some cases which may lead
an increase of making mistake and intuitive system is too simple that it cannot
prevent the potential accident happening (As all know, prevent mistake happening
is much better than recover the mistake) (Hollnagel, et al., 2006). Therefore, a
resilience system which uses both intuitive and sophisticated systems and balances
them with the companies’ current situation would be a better system to improve
aviation safety a lot.
For the long historical organizations, such as IATA, ICAO and FAA who are
already have a lot of experienced and professional expert need to mainly use the
sophisticated system to make themselves benefits maximize. These organization
does not need to worry about lack of professional engineers, thus they could make
sophisticated system work well. In addition, these organization are almost the base

9. of every countries’aviation industry. They need to discover potential problems with
the plenty data they have got from every airline, and increase the safe level of
aviation system. Therefore, being more professional will lead the whole aviation
industry safer.
For the airline companies, especially small and new airline companies, could
mainly use intuitive system to suit their great number of novice. The airline
companies, especially small companies have new novice join the companies every
year. Thus, an intuitive system with high-tech equipment could make the novice
get into work quickly. In addition, one of the goals of airline companies is making
profit, thus intuitive system could help them save plenty of money because it needs
less maintenance, less training and more efficient.
However, neither of the complete organizations nor airline companies could
completely use one system. They need to be resilience. Because of the work fatigue,
the complete organization also need some intuitive system to make their staff can
work easily after hours hard working. Resilience engineering needs to provide
organizations with the help on how to decide when to relax production pressure to
reduce risk. (Hollnagel, et al., 2006) In addition, because of the high level computer
technology, some complex work which not need personal decision could be done
by computer software and make the work tend to intuitive. On the other hand, even
small airline companies need have some professional engineers, expert training and

10. sophisticated system to deal with the emergency events. For example, from the
Figure 3.1, it could be seen that the accident happened more often during the take-
off and landing time. Therefore, the pilot must have expert training for take-off and
landing. The pilot need follow the professional steps for take-off and landing and
pay more attention to the surrounding situation. Another example is that people
cannot too rely on technology equipment. From the Figure 3.2, it could be seen
that, without human’s maintenance, the technical risk will constantly rise.
Therefore, small airline companies also need a little of sophisticated system to
make their system function well.
Figure 3.1: Accidents and Fatalities by Phase of Flight
Source: Accidents and Fatalities by Phase of Flight 2003-2012

11. Figure 3.2: Level of technical risk over time
Source: (Hollnagel, et al., 2006)
4.0 Conclusion
Depending on the analysis above, it could be seen that resilience system which mix
the intuitive and sophisticated system could give the aviation industry more benefit
and more safety. Different people have different backgrounds and individual
characteristics. Resilience system could make everyone work well in the system
avoid misunderstanding and many mistakes.

12. 5.0 Bibliography
Air Crash Investigation. 2003-present. [Film] Directed by André Barro. Canada: Cineflix.
Boeing, 2012. Statistical Summary of Commercial Jet Airplane Accidents. [Online]
Available at: http://www.boeing.com/news/techissues/pdf/statsum.pdf
[Accessed 10 4 2014].
CCOHS, 2012. Fatigue. [Online]
Available at: http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/psychosocial/fatigue.html#_1_4
[Accessed 10 4 2014].
Hollnagel, E., woods, d. D. & leveson, n., 2006. resilience engineering. In: concepts and precepts.
England: Ashgate Publishing Limited, pp. 15-16; 19; 32; 36; 40; 81; 120; 181; 185.
Krishnakumar, K., Viken, S. & Nguyen, N., 2009. Integrated Resilient Aircraft Control. [Online]
Available at: http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov/nra_pdf/irac_tech_plan_c1.pdf
[Accessed 7 4 2014].
McClumpha, A., 2013. Sustaining a resilient transport security system. [Online]
Available at: http://leighfisher-globaloutlook.com/feature/Aviation/~/1617/Sustaining-a-resilient-
transport-security-system
[Accessed 6 4 2014].
McClumpha, A., 2013. Sustaining a resilient transport security system. [Online]
Available at: http://leighfisher-globaloutlook.com/feature/Aviation/~/1617/Sustaining-a-resilient-
transport-security-system
[Accessed 6 4 2014].
PlaneCrashInfo, 2014. accident Statistics. [Online]
Available at: http://www.planecrashinfo.com/cause.htm
[Accessed 10 4 2014].