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This study examines the differences of operational errors among pilots and aircraft engineers’ actions and inactions in the discharge of their duties. A questionnaire survey was conducted on a purposively selected sample of pilots and aircraft engineers at the four major international airports in Nigeria. The study employed Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to analyse the data collected for the study. The results of the study show that apprehension/panic, interpersonal tension, overconfidence and delay are the most significant contributory factors to aviation incident and or accident among pilots. Similarly, the results for the aircraft engineers found unfavourable environment, personal problems and lack of confidence as the most critical human errors that contribute to aviation accidents in Nigeria. The implications of these results portend grave concern for air safety in Nigeria’s aviation industry. The paper therefore recommends that all professions involved in the overall air transport industry in the country should put in place strategies that will ensure zero per cent chance for errors in the industry.
Keywords: Pilots, Aircraft Engineers, Aviation, incident, accident, errors