John Lauber K. Safety Award
The award honors Dr. John K. Lauber, a pioneer in the field of aviation safety and human factors. Dr. Lauber was a two-term member of the National Transportation Safety Board. Prior to his consecutive appointments by Presidents Ronal Reagan and George Bush, he served as Chief of the Aeronautical Human Factors Research Office at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, CA where he was instrumental in the development of advanced flight crew training concepts such as Crew Resource Management (CRM) and Line Oriented Flight Training (LOFT) that are now used by airlines around the world. He served as Senior Vice President and Chief Product Safety Officer for Airbus SAS in Toulouse, France until his retirement in January, 2008; Vice President – Safety and Technical Affairs for Airbus North America in Washington, DC; and Vice President–Training and Human Factors for Airbus Service Company. Prior to joining Airbus Lauber was Vice President - Corporate Safety and Compliance at Delta Air Lines and a research psychologist at the US Naval Training Devices Center in Orlando, FL. He has served as President of the International Federation of Airworthiness (2004-2005) and the Association for Aviation Psychology (1984). He has also served on several NASA, FAA and NRC Boards and committees, including the Workshop on Assessing the Research and Development Plan for the Next Generation Air Transportation System, and the Committee on the Effects of Commuting on Pilot Fatigue; presently he is serving as Co-chair of the NRC committee on Autonomy Research for Civil Aviation.
Dr. Lauber received a Ph.D. degree in neuropsychology from Ohio State University. He held a commercial pilot license with both airplane and helicopter ratings, and was type-rated in the B727 and the A320.
Lauber focused his career on group dynamics, leadership, interpersonal communications, and decision-making. Lauber defined CRM as “using all available sources—information, equipment, and people—to achieve safe and efficient flight operations.”
Dr. Lauber received a Ph.D. degree in neuropsychology from Ohio State University. He held a commercial pilot license with both airplane and helicopter ratings, and was type-rated in the B727 and the A320.
Lauber focused his career on group dynamics, leadership, interpersonal communications, and decision-making. Lauber defined CRM as “using all available sources—information, equipment, and people—to achieve safe and efficient flight operations.”