B737-700
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Workload; Time Pressure; Distraction; Communication Breakdown; Confusion
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Other / Unknown
General None Reported / Taken
Company Policy; Human Factors; Procedure
For the second time in a month; an off-line Jumpseater presented paperwork that indicated he was a Company Pilot; through no fault of his own. Both times the Ticket Agent was at fault. Neither Operations agents caught the error. It was left up to the pilots to catch it. This stems from a culture to rush; even though officially we are all told to not rush. Mistakes are being made every day because operationally there is a quiet yet palpable urgency to do the job in minimum time. Load sheets with incorrect fuel uplift. Load sheets that state Ground Operations copy presented to pilots. Pressure to board before aircraft security status and Flight Attendant briefings are complete. Missing bags updated when airborne. And it all falls in pilot's lap. We are given responsibility for everything and authority over nothing. A great deal is made of safety and security being our priorities. The way we operate would say otherwise.Reduce the punitive nature to get aircraft out on time. We are minimally staffed and any hiccup in Operations causes tremendous strain.
A B737 Captain reported his Company's on time performance pressure on pilots; flight attendants; and agents sets the stage for numerous types of errors including unauthorized pilots in the cockpit because of faulty paperwork.