Human Factors Ground School

Helping Pilots of All Levels Make Better Decisions


Nearly all aviation accidents have their roots in human error. This updated course will present basic human factors and apply them to Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM) and Risk Management. The influence of the unconscious mind, including our cognitive biases, is explored without the psychobabble, but with practical application examples. Some accident analyses are presented to illustrate important concepts. Lessons are primarily delivered via narrated video. Pertinent documents are available for download and review quizzes are provided for each section. A final course quiz must be successfully completed to earn FAA Wings credit.

Valid for All 3 FAA Wings Credits at the Basic Level (Basic Knowledge-1, Basic Knowledge-2, Basic Knowledge-3)

Completion time is approximately 3.5 hours.


Your Instructor


Gene Benson
Gene Benson

Gene is a retired professional pilot who is internationally recognized as a leader in improving human performance by reducing human error. His academic background in psychology aided him in developing procedures and methods to reduce human errors and improve safety in aviation. He played a role in developing many of the safety concepts used world-wide in aviation today. Since retiring from flying, he has worked successfully with companies in high-stakes industries to help them reduce human error in their processes. Now, he is using these same concepts to help individuals be better, safer, and make fewer errors in everything they do.

Throughout his career, he remained active as a flight instructor, giving more than 8,000 hours of dual instruction. He specialized in training flight instructors, recommending 270 for their initial flight instructor certification. He has particularly enjoyed teaching pilot ground schools at all levels.


Course Curriculum


  Before We Begin
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  Section 1 - Human Factors Basics - Hazards, Risk, and Aeronautical Decision Making
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  Section 2 - Human Factors in Limitations, Systems, Performance, and Loss of Control
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  Section 3 - Human Factors in Preflight Planning, Risk Management, and Fuel Management
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  Section 4 - Understanding Our Humanness
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  Course Conclusion
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  Quiz
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Frequently Asked Questions


How long do I have to complete the course?
The course must be completed within 90 days of enrollment.
What if I am unhappy with the course?
We would never want you to be unhappy! If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, contact us in the first 5 days and we will give you a full refund. (Refunds will not be made if FAA Wings credit has been issued.)

Get started now!