Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2005

City

Dayton

Abstract

Disorientation due to flying into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) is a major safety hazard for VFR pilots (VFR: visual flight rules) as confirmed by aviation accident databases. The objectives of our research are the development and evaluation of systematic training programs to cope with different kinds of disorientation phenomena and the analysis of the psychophysiological processes during dis- and reorientation. A study was conducted using the multi-axial moveable flight simulator DISO (AMST Systemtechnik GmbH, Austria). 25 pilots were randomly allocated to one of three testing groups (one control- and two experimental training groups). The flight performance data confirm that participants with a training show better performance data in a test phase than pilots without training. The simulation scenarios are of high impact: Heart rates are clearly increased in response to more demanding segments of flight as e.g. during takeoff and landing. Analyses within the test profile “unusualattitude recovery” demonstrate – in addition to the expected increase of heart rate due to higher mental workload – an important interaction: The increase is lower for pilots having received an unusual-attitude recovery training. First EEG results illustrate changes in the alpha- and beta band due to changing strain. To sum up, this study tries to make a contribution to basic research by analyzing psychophysiological processes as well as to applied science by emphasizing the importance and effectiveness of orientation training programs for VFR pilots.

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