Delivering the Right Stuff: How the Airlines’ Evolution In Human Factors Delivered Safety and Operational Excellence

Tom Wolfe’s 1979’s novel, The Right Stuff, highlighted how seven test pilots were picked to be part of the Mercury Project. In Wolfe’s book, he documents the enormous risk that these men took to push the envelope and deliver America to be the first on the moon. These men were chosen because of their mental and physical toughness—they were chosen because they had “the right stuff.” As the space and aviation industries matured, they quickly learned that relying on men and women to have the “right stuff” does not work. Several high profile fatal airline accidents led to the creation of a new term—“Human Factors.” Delivering the Right Stuff examines the airline industry’s investigations into Human Factors and details how key findings from aircraft accidents shaped its acceptance of pilot error. It is an evolution that delivered transferrable frontline tools that forged a foundation for safety and operational excellence.