Human factors for drone pilots: fitness, vision, scanning and decisions
The 12-hour alcohol rule, cannabis guidance, IM SAFE, night vision, scanning for traffic, hazardous attitudes and risk models for the Transport Canada exams.
Checked against the rules in force on 2026-10-01The pilot is the most important part of the system. Transport Canada's human factors questions check that you can tell when you should not fly, and that you can see traffic in time.
Fit to fly
CAR 901.19 forbids acting as a crew member:
- within 12 hours of drinking alcohol,
- while under the influence of alcohol or a drug that impairs you,
- while fatigued or otherwise unfit.
Under the Criminal Code, operating an aircraft while impaired to any degree is an offence. Transport Canada recommends that pilots and visual observers wait at least 28 days after using cannabis.
Before each flight, run Transport Canada's IM SAFE checklist: Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue, and Eating and drinking. Any "yes" means you are not fit to fly.
Cold weather reduces dexterity and adds stress. Running a car engine to warm the control station can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning: headache, blurred vision and drowsiness are warning signs.
Seeing traffic
Most of the information you use comes through your eyes, and only the centre of the eye sees sharply. Spotting, recognizing and avoiding an aircraft can take up to 10 seconds.
- Scan in short, regular eye movements, using blocks of about 10 to 15 degrees.
- When you stare at an empty sky your eyes relax and stop focusing; look at a cloud or a tree line to refocus.
- Often you will hear an aircraft before you see it, so keep the site quiet.
- Full dark adaptation takes 20 to 30 minutes and is lost in seconds by bright light. At night, look slightly to the side of a dim light.
Decisions
Five hazardous attitudes lead pilots into trouble: anti-authority, impulsivity, invulnerability, macho and resignation. Name the attitude when you notice it and replace it with its antidote, for example "Not so fast. Think first" for impulsivity.
Use a risk model such as PAVE (Pilot, Aircraft, enVironment, External pressures) to find hazards, and decide which risks to remove, reduce or accept. Pressure from a client or employer is a hazard too: safety comes before schedule or hierarchy.
Working as a crew
Brief the crew on roles and emergencies, agree on how you will communicate, and keep a sterile environment: no unrelated chat while the drone is flying. If anyone becomes overloaded, add crew or simplify the job.
Sources: CARs 901.19 · TC AIM RPA 3.2.6–3.2.7 · TP 15263 sec. 3
Try 5 questions on this topic
Free sample questions with a debrief for each answer.
During a stressful flight you feel dizzy, with tingling in your fingers, after breathing fast. What is the best action?
A pilot flies close to a crowd to show off, saying, "Watch this, I can do it." Which hazardous attitude is this?
Under the Canadian Aviation Regulations, how long after consuming an alcoholic beverage must you wait before acting as a crew member of a drone operation?
At night, a dim light disappears when you look directly at it. What technique helps you see it?
A client insists you fly today despite gusty winds because the house must be listed tomorrow. In the PAVE checklist, this is
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