Plain English Meaning
Believing something is true because you want it to be true, instead of looking honestly at what is really happening.
Full Definition
A psychological hazard in which a pilot allows hope or desire to influence the interpretation of facts, leading them to believe a situation is better, safer, or more manageable than the evidence actually supports.
Context Anchor
Seen in aeronautical decision-making, especially when a pilot is deciding whether to continue, divert, delay, or stop a flight.
Derivation
Wishful comes from wish, meaning a desire for something to happen. In this phrase, the important idea is that the thinking is being shaped by desire rather than by the facts in front of the pilot.
Why Pilots Care
It leads pilots to override objective data with hope, increasing the chance of accidents or incidents.