PLT104: CRM and Human Factors
What code PLT104 covers, why the FAA tests it, and how to study CRM and Human Factors before your checkride.
Recall Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM) - human factors / CRM
What this means for your checkride
Crew resource management (CRM), and single-pilot resource management, applies human-factors principles to using all available resources, people, equipment, and information, to fly safely. It covers communication, workload management, situational awareness, and guarding against the errors human factors introduce.
Most accidents trace to human factors rather than mechanical failure, so the FAA tests CRM concepts and how to manage workload and resources.
Pilots think CRM is only for crews. Single-pilot resource management applies the same discipline solo: manage workload, use automation and ATC as resources, and keep situational awareness.
Where to study it
A code on your test report is an area of deficiency. An authorized instructor must review it with you and endorse that review before you take the practical test, and the examiner may revisit it during the oral. Study it until you can explain it out loud, not just recognize the answer.