Definition
A professional standard for flight instructors stating that safety awareness and accident prevention must be active, continuous behaviors during every instructional activity—on the ground, in the aircraft, and in all interactions with students. The instructor is expected to model safe practices, identify and mitigate hazards before they escalate, enforce checklist discipline, maintain situational awareness, and intervene when a student's action could compromise safety. This standard applies whether the risk is operational, mechanical, environmental, or behavioral.
Plain English
Always be looking out for things that could go wrong, and act early to keep them from happening. Safety is not something you turn on for checkrides or emergencies—it's how you operate every minute you're teaching.
Context Anchor
Seen in guidance for aviation instructors, especially in lists of professional instructor behaviors and responsibilities.
Why Pilots Care
Instructors who follow this principle model the behavior that reduces student errors and lowers overall accident rates in training.
Intuition Check
Do not read “practice” here as “rehearse for later.” Here it means “carry out as a regular habit.” Do not read “at all times” as only during emergencies; it means during routine moments too, such as preflight, taxi, briefing, and cleanup after the lesson.
Example Sentence 1
By practicing safety and accident prevention at all times, the instructor caught the loose cowling fastener during the walkaround and prevented an in-flight problem.
Example Sentence 2
Even during classroom discussions, the instructor practiced safety and accident prevention at all times by highlighting weather-related decision points.