--- title: What a Facebook Meme Can Teach Us About Surviving LOC-I in Aviation description: A viral meme shows why awareness isn’t enough. Discover how pilots can survive LOC-I with real training, not just recognition. image: https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hubfs/ChatGPT%20Image%20Apr%2018%2c%202025%2c%2003_19_25%20PM.png --- [Skip to content](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/blog/what-a-facebook-meme-can-teach-us-about-surviving-loci-in-aviation#main-content) We Help Pilots Overcome Loss of Control In-flight, Aviation's #1 Fatal Safety Threat. [![EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hs-fs/hubfs/APS%20Assets/EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo.png?width=960&height=447&name=EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo.png "EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo")](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/) [![EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo-White](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hs-fs/hubfs/APS%20Assets/EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo-White.png?width=960&height=447&name=EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo-White.png "EPIC-Speakers-Website-Logo-White")](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/) - [Home](https://every-pilot-in-control.com) - [Blog](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/blog) - [Social Media](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/social) - [About](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/speakers) - [Contact Us](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/contact-us) - [EPIC UPRT Providers](https://apstraining.com/) April 18 2025 # What a Facebook Meme Can Teach Us About Surviving LOC-I in Aviation [Paul BJ Ransbury, CEO at Aviation Performance Solutions](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/blog/author/paul-bj-ransbury-ceo-at-aviation-performance-solutions) ![Blog Details](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hubfs/ChatGPT%20Image%20Apr%2018%2c%202025%2c%2003_19_25%20PM.png) [upset prevention and recovery training](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/blog/tag/upset-prevention-and-recovery-training), [LOC-I](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/blog/tag/loc-i) > The #1 killer in aviation isn’t always obvious or visible—and neither was the message behind one of Facebook’s most viral memes. ### The Problem With Awareness-Only Campaigns ![show a computer monitor with I like it on the floor with the cancer awareness logo with a confused lumberjack looking at it scratching his head](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hs-fs/hubfs/AI-Generated%20Media/Images/show%20a%20computer%20monitor%20with%20I%20like%20it%20on%20the%20floor%20with%20the%20cancer%20awareness%20logo%20with%20a%20confused%20lumberjack%20looking%20at%20it%20scratching%20his%20head.jpeg?width=384&height=220&name=show%20a%20computer%20monitor%20with%20I%20like%20it%20on%20the%20floor%20with%20the%20cancer%20awareness%20logo%20with%20a%20confused%20lumberjack%20looking%20at%20it%20scratching%20his%20head.jpeg) A cryptic meme titled “I like it on the floor” circulated throughout Facebook in 2010. The initial impression suggested either playfulness or suggestiveness but the post served as a breast cancer awareness initiative. The meme [rapidly expanded throughout social networks](https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/sexy-status-updates-sweep-facebook/story?id=11823883) yet its original meaning failed to reach everyone. The  post lacked important elements such as donation links and survivor stories and clear next steps but it did include a brief moment of curiosity followed by rapid social media sharing (Mahoney & Tang, 2017). The incident demonstrated the awareness of an idea, vaguely connected to a cause, without any resulting action. The phenomenon has parallel implications for our aviation field regarding [Loss of Control In-Flight  (LOC-I)](https://www.easa.europa.eu/en/domains/general-aviation/flying-safely/loss-of-control) which remains our most dangerous causal factor in fatal accidents. The aviation industry has spent decades sending safety messages yet, as a result of the training industry being unable to take meaningful action to measurably reduce the rate of associate accident occurrences, [LOC-I remains the #1 risk for fatal aviation accidents](https://www.ntsb.gov/Advocacy/mwl/Pages/mwl6-2016.aspx) (NTSB, 2023). The Facebook meme mirrors the situation of pilots who acknowledge LOC-I but lack sufficient training, and readily available training options, to handle its triggering flight conditions. ### Memes Versus Maydays: Aviation's Parallel ![rugged-sam-cockpit-overbank-extra300-cropped-integrated](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hs-fs/hubfs/rugged-sam-cockpit-overbank-extra300-cropped-integrated.jpg?width=384&height=288&name=rugged-sam-cockpit-overbank-extra300-cropped-integrated.jpg)LOC-I functions as the aviation equivalent of the vague meme because it receives widespread recognition despite being poorly understood by many pilots. The fatal nature of LOC-I poses a significant risk because pilots rarely experience realistic training scenarios that match the fast pace and intense disorientation of actual upset events. LOC-I awareness exists at a basic level for most people. The meme's inability to turn attention into results creates a problem  that the aviation industry risks replicating. Mahoney and Tang (2017) stress that lasting behavioral transformation needs both audience-relevant content and active audience participation (p. 112). Our industry requires  training that fully engages both physical and mental capacities. ### What Pilots Can Learn from a Meme #### Awareness must lead to action. The existence of LOC-I as a problem is insufficient on its own. The [mitigation of this issue demands specific  training in UPRT](https://www.apstraining.com/risk-mitigation) along with practiced recovery techniques and training that includes startle responses and spatial disorientation  and surprise elements (Mahoney & Tang, 2017; Kim & Drumwright, 2016). #### The environment needs built-in engagement features. The meme gained popularity because it perfectly integrated with the standard Facebook interface. The implementation of effective UPRT requires integration into operational environments through aircraft training and full-flight simulators and type-specific virtual reality platforms which instructors deliver with an understanding of the critical nature of the training (Hootsuite, 2016). #### Messaging must meet mindset. The nature of pilots prevents them from being influenced by superficial information. LOC-I training together with safety communication needs to present direct data-based  information which supports actionable standards. The Every Pilot In Control Solution Standard (EPIC-S2TM) framework  by APS provides a direct link between awareness and real-world competency (Ashley & Tuten, 2014; Schivinski, Christodoulides, & Dabrowski, 2016). ### Final Thought ![lets-do-it-inverted-meme](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hs-fs/hubfs/lets-do-it-inverted-meme.jpg?width=414&height=233&name=lets-do-it-inverted-meme.jpg) The Breast Cancer Meme initiated a discussion yet failed to establish any further direction for  participants. Such gaps in aviation protocols result in lost lives instead of merely wasting attention. Perhaps an effective LOC-I meme in the theme of "I like it on the floor" could be "Let's do it inverted".  The purpose of  awareness should not be mistaken for reaching a conclusion. For pilots, it’s a call to prepare. LOC-I is survivable—but only for those who are ready. Every second is crucial--life and death--during the next in-flight upset event. The purpose of training exists to prepare pilots for emergency situations. Leadership requires taking  charge. Every pilot needs to maintain control of their aircraft. --- ![Paul-Ransbury-2024-square-bright](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Paul-Ransbury-2024-square-bright.jpg?width=120&height=120&name=Paul-Ransbury-2024-square-bright.jpg)Author: [Capt. Paul BJ Ransbury](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/speakers) is the CEO and founder of [Aviation Performance Solutions](https://apstrainining.com/) and Executive Director of [EPIC Professional Pilot Solutions](https://every-pilot-in-control.com/). As a former military fighter pilot and airlines pilot, with thousands of hours training pilots in UPRT to overcome LOC-I, he is committed to helping pilots bring everyone home safely on every flight. --- References Ashley, C., & Tuten, T. (2014). Creative strategies in social media marketing: An exploratory study of branded social content and consumer engagement. Psychology & Marketing, 32(1), 15–27. [https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20761](https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20761) Aviation Performance Solutions (APS). (2025). Mitigating your #1 fatal air safety risk. APS. [https://www.apstraining.com/risk-mitigation](https://www.apstraining.com/risk-mitigation)  Hootsuite. (2016). *How to research your social media audience: A Hootsuite worksheet*. https://blog.hootsuite.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Social-Media-Audience-Research-guide.pdf Kim, E., & Drumwright, M. (2016). Engaging consumers and building relationships in social media: How social relatedness influences intrinsic vs. extrinsic consumer motivation. Computers in Human Behavior, 63, 970–979. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.06.025](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.06.025) Mahoney, L. M., & Tang, T. (2017). *Strategic social media: From marketing to social change*. Wiley-Blackwell. NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board. (2023). Prevent loss of control in flight in general aviation. NTSB. [https://www.ntsb.gov/Advocacy/mwl/Pages/mwl6-2016.aspx](https://www.ntsb.gov/Advocacy/mwl/Pages/mwl6-2016.aspx)  Schivinski, B., Christodoulides, G., & Dabrowski, D. (2016). *Measuring consumers’ engagement with brand-related social-media content*. 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