January 21, 2026
Introduction
Welcome to the AMFA Toolbox Talk series — a monthly conversation focused on strengthening our safety culture and on-the-job awareness. Each month, we’ll highlight one of the Dirty Dozen human factors that contribute to workplace errors, using real-world aviation examples, practical prevention strategies, and discussion points relevant to every AMT/AME. These challenges are not new or rare in our industry, but their impact remains significant. By keeping safety at the forefront of our daily routines, we can better recognize risks, reduce errors, and uphold the highest standards of safety and professionalism across our operation.
Program Goals
- Reinforce human factors awareness
- Reduce maintenance errors and repeat findings
- Protect certificates, jobs, and lives
- Build a speak-up, rule-compliant safety culture
Norms
“Habit is not procedure.”
Norms are unofficial ways of doing things that develop over time, often to save effort or time. Phrases like “This is how we’ve always done it” can quietly replace approved procedures. In aviation, this form of normalized deviance is dangerous.
Just because something hasn’t gone wrong yet doesn’t mean it’s safe or legal. Regulations and approved procedures define the standard, not habit. When norms override compliance, risk becomes routine. Eventually, that risk catches up through accidents, enforcement actions, job loss, or tragedy. The cost of ignoring proper procedures may be paid by people you know and care about.
“Workarounds” and unofficial practices slowly become accepted norms. The Chalk’s Ocean Airways Flight 101 accident is a tragic example, where long -standing maintenance shortcuts replaced approved procedures, leading to structural failure and loss of life.
Hazard: “This is how we’ve always done it.”
Takeaway
- Shop habits are not regulations.
- Norms are not rules.
- Approved procedures are the standard.
- Norms don’t protect certificates; compliance does.
- Follow the AMM, not tradition. Deviating from them can end your career and cost lives.
