In aviation, we are constantly reminded to do the right thing and prioritize safety in all aspects of flight operations. This is particularly true in the field of aircraft maintenance. A maintenance error on the ground can prove fatal once the plane is in the air. After all, there are no emergency routes in the sky. That being said, airlines and corporate flight services are in the business of making money. Naturally, the longer a plane stays on the ground, the more money the airline or company loses. Due to a poor economy, airlines are striving more than ever to increase the productivity of their maintenance departments to reduce aircraft downtime. This means they spend less time on maintenance inspections and repairs. Management pushes its maintenance departments to the limits of productivity and efforts to maximize profits. Unfortunately, among the budget cuts, security is crossed off the list. This rushed approach to aircraft maintenance leads to human errors. This is why it is imperative that mechanics, regardless of their experience level, are aware of human factors and how they impact their daily activities. And perhaps most importantly, how to protect yourself and others from human factors hazards. Before explaining how human factors affect aviation safety, we need to understand what human factors are. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) definition of human factors is: “A multidisciplinary effort to generate and compile information about human capabilities and limitations and to apply that information to equipment, systems, software, facilities, procedures, jobs, environments, training, personnel, and personnel management to produce safe comfort...... middle of paper ......ion Today August 08, 2009: n. page. Internet. April 16, 2011. Graeber, Curt. “The role of human factors in improving aviation safety.” Aero Magazine Unknown: n. page. Internet. April 16, 2011. http://www.boeing.com/commercial/aeromagazine/aero_08/human.html.Johnson, Bill. “Human Factors Toolkit”. AMT Magazine January 12, 2011: n. page. Internet. April 12, 2011. http://www.amtonline.com/publication/article.jsp?pubId=1&id=5571. United States Federal Aviation Administration. “System Security Manual”. , 2000. The web. April 12, 2011. http://www.faa.gov/library/manuals/aviation/risk_management/ss_handbook/media/Chap17_1200.PDF. United States Federal Aviation Administration. “Safety Management System Components”. , 2009. The web. April 16, 2011. http://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/sms/explained/components/