Alex Pollitt is a former Royal Navy helicopter pilot, with experience in military and civil Search and Rescue operations, and is currently flying in a maritime SAR operation with the Spanish Coastguard. He has a particular interest in Crew Resource Management, and is both a civil and military accredited CRM Instructor, with an MA in International Liaison and Communication.
Developing resilience in helicopter operations
‘Startle and surprise’ training is mandatory in the airline industry, but not so in helicopter operations. Alex Pollitt argues that until companies are forced to pay for this extra training…
The automation explosion: examining the human factor fallout
Alex Pollitt explores the dramatic demand for automation in the cockpit, and how it has both alleviated pilot workload and exposed our limited understanding of the human factor at the…
Alex Pollitt, a SAR pilot with Babcock Mission Critical Services España, asks if the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean could result in the final flourish of the manned helicopter as…
Crew resource management in SAR and HEMS operations
Alex Pollitt considers the issue of the exact roles and responsibilities held by helicopter technical crew, asking, if you’re not flight crew, what are you?