Single Pilot, No Safety Net: Why SRM Is Not “CRM Lite”

A common misconception in aviation is that Single-Pilot Resource Management is simply CRM without a co-pilot.

It isn’t.

CRM is built around communication, cross-checking, and shared decision-making between crew members. SRM, by contrast, is built around self-management as a single pilot operation.

In a single-pilot cockpit:

• You are the captain and the first officer

• You monitor your own performance

• You challenge your own assumptions

• You manage your own fatigue, stress, and bias

There is no safety net.

This makes SRM especially critical in GA, charter, survey, EMS, and IFR operations environments where pilots operate independently, often under pressure, and frequently outside rigid airline structures.

SRM teaches pilots how to:

• Actively self-monitor

• Recognise when performance is degrading

• Manage personal limitations

• Use all available resources — not just human ones

SRM isn’t about replacing CRM. It’s about acknowledging the reality of single-pilot flying and giving pilots the tools to operate safely within it.

Because self-reliance without self-management is a risk.