Aviation Mental Health: Psychological Implications for Air Transportation. Edited by Robert Bor & Todd Hubbard. Ashgate Publishing. 2006. 376pp. £65.00 (hb). ISBN 0754643719

If you are looking for a book to read on a long haul flight, this is not the one! A random selection of some of the key issues discussed in Aviation Mental Health reveals why. Pilot suicide by aircraft and the nature of language used in airport announcements ‘this is your last and final call’ being two topics that may set off a train of thought that is not modified even by the fascinating fact that air travel is 18 times safer than staying at home.

Aviation mental health is a topic that impinges on many aspects of medical practice, from the management of flying phobias to severe in-flight medical emergencies such as acute psychotic episodes. This is perhaps the first textbook to cover the whole range of aviation mental health from selection and management of flight and cabin crew through to the management of the psychological consequences of flying and crashing.

With such a wide target audience it has perhaps been difficult in this first edition to balance the content between specialist and generalist information. The chapters range from quite technical multi-author submissions on sleep and mental performance with general applications through to single-author chapters on highly specialised topics such as psychological aspects of astronaut selection. Overall, however, the content is well balanced with an appropriate level of theory and advice on practical management.

The style of the book, as with many multi-author collections, lacks coherence. Perhaps the editors will be able to address this in a second edition? The layout of the chapters within the book is confusing. Part 1, ‘psychological issues of flight and cabin crew’, deals with issues relating to passengers, whereas Part 2, ‘psychological processes amongst passengers and crew’, does not. The third section, ‘related themes in aviation’ has the appearance of a standby line of passengers who couldn't be fitted into one of the previous two sections, the content ranging from occupational factors in pilot mental health through to aviation psychology in South Africa.

Overall this is a useful practical guide to an important area of occupational mental health which, despite the inevitable teething troubles of a first edition, is well worth reading.