Assessing UAM emergency procedures in existing or new heliports

With the rising interest from big investors and manufacturers in UAM solutions, many vehicle prototypes and ground infrastructure designs are beginning to appear and being tested in real-world scenarios. This mode of air transportation could be a game-changer if the different milestones are achieved. While there are many challenges to be covered, from noise pollution to airspace management, safety is probably one of the main elements to be assessed. And while much effort has been given into designing and promoting UAM vehicles, little research has been published or conducted about safety considerations. This study provides with a discussion on different findings related to safety based on a root cause analysis of reported and documented helicopter accidents involving similar environments and conditions to those UAM will face. By assessing these hazards in similar VTOL aircraft such as helicopters, an extrapolation to UAM vehicles is made for different types of vehicles, depending on their characteristics and performance capabilities observed in various prototypes. The analysis is divided in two main parts. The first part focuses on the different occurrences involved in the accidents, following the CICTT standard definitions for reporting aviation accidents and incidents. The second part goes deeper and analyses the causes involved that lead to those occurrences, and how these could apply to UAM vehicles. The discussion considers the identified hazards in different levels, depending on factors such as human presence and automation, and their impact on criticality, prevention and mitigation. The overall study provides with some guidelines on safety issues that are considered relevant for future research in the field of UAM, as well as for the future standardization of the necessary elements to implement and regulate these systems in urban centers

Aeronautical Engineering. A continuing bibliography, supplement 115

This bibliography lists 273 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in October 1979

Community rotorcraft air transportation benefits and opportunities

Information about rotorcraft that will assist community planners in assessing and planning for the use of rotorcraft transportation in their communities is provided. Information useful to helicopter researchers, manufacturers, and operators concerning helicopter opportunities and benefits is also given. Three primary topics are discussed: the current status and future projections of rotorcraft technology, and the comparison of that technology with other transportation vehicles; the community benefits of promising rotorcraft transportation opportunities; and the integration and interfacing considerations between rotorcraft and other transportation vehicles. Helicopter applications in a number of business and public service fields are examined in various geographical settings

Globalization from top and below: (re)framing (brazilian) margins in two north-american documentaries

Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Comunicação e Expressão, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras/Inglês e Literatura Correspondente, Florianópolis, 2010This dissertation analyzes the configuration of socioeconomic and national margins in two contemporary North-American documentaries entirely filmed in Brazil--Favela Rising (Jeff Zimbalist and Matt Mochary, 2005) and Manda Bala (Jason Kohn, 2008). In an attempt to contribute to the research on the representation of Brazil in foreign films, the investigation draws upon concepts such as globalization (Appadurai, 1996; Jameson, 2003), identity (Min-ha, 1997), and difference (Appadurai, 1996; Bhabha, 1996) to approach the documentaries not as fixed representations of a given reality, but as cultural texts that might or not be articulated through the notion of nation. The hypothesis is that the analyzed documentaries are sites for the configuration of margins and, for that reason, are privileged instances to observe the constitution of identities and differences. The conclusion-reached through individual and comparative analyses-is that the documentaries present very distinct articulations of socioeconomic and national margins. On one hand, Manda Bala, through an argumentative and circular structure, reinforces socioeconomic identities circumscribed by a Brazilian national margin. Besides presenting a totalizing portrayal of Brazil, Manda Bala reproduces a colonial gaze that fixes Brazilian society as cannibal, and reinforces the dominant gaze that it seeks to criticize. On the other hand, Favela Rising, through a mainly narrative structure, moves the gaze of national proportions towards the favela of Vigário Geral, in Rio de Janeiro. Less than creating a micro-portrait of Brazil, Favela Rising suggests the existence of social formations beyond national margins, whose political strength exists in its refusal of the negative difference imposed by socioeconomic margins. Another conclusion is that the documentaries present, in an opposite and complementary manner, contradictory forces at play in globalization

Effects of Online Training on Aircrew Monitoring Behaviors: A Field Study

Data from aircraft accidents and line observation studies indicate that inadequate pilot monitoring is a growing safety concern. In the cockpit environment, pilots who fail to properly manage their workload commit more monitoring errors. Given the lack of training and educational programs available to pilots which emphasize improving their monitoring skills, more research is needed to assess the usefulness of types of training that can be used to improve pilots\u27 monitoring. This research project sets out to determine if the potential exists to enhance pilots\u27 monitoring skills through online training. For this study, 40 military helicopter pilots (participants) were divided into two training groups: (1) an online training group, which completed a 20-minute web-based training module, and (2) a control group, which read a 20-minute article on aviation safety. Within each group, the pilots were paired and completed two training events in a flight simulator as part of their normal duties. The effects of the training were evaluated using Kirkpatrick\u27s multi-level framework: reactions, learning, behaviors, and results. First, all pilots receiving training were surveyed to capture the trainees\u27 perceptions of satisfaction and utility of the training. Second, all pilots were given a multiple-choice test to assess the effect the training had on learners\u27 knowledge of the training objectives. Next, the researchers observed, via video recording, both groups\u27 behaviors during flight simulator events. The researchers recorded occurrences of four behavior markers as the crews flew multiple instrument approaches. The researchers used two of these markers to study transfer of training and two markers to examine positive vs. negative outcomes at critical tasks during the simulated flights. The results show positive changes in the reactions, learning, and behavior dimensions, lending support to the effectiveness of relatively inexpensive online training to teach monitoring skills

Aerospace Medicine and Biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes, supplement 192

This bibliography lists 247 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in March 1979

Applying Human Error Framework To Explore Prevention Strategies For Wrong Surface Events

Wrong surface events are a serious and ongoing risk to aviation safety in the United States National Airspace System. A wrong surface event occurs when an aircraft lands, departs or attempts to land or depart from a surface other than the intended landing or takeoff, also including aircraft landing at the wrong airport. This research examined the contextual factors that contributed to human error ultimately leading to wrong surface events, assessed the efficacy of technology that can be used to prevent, and aviation professional’s awareness of wrong surface events in order to determine prevention strategies that can reduce occurrences in the NAS. Four NTSB reports were reviewed to identify context that influences a pilot’s actions in wrong surface events. Next, flight deck and air traffic control tower based technologies were examined for their ability to detect and alert the conditions in the four event reports. Finally, eleven aviation professionals were interviewed to assess their awareness and knowledge of risks, strategies, historical events, and terminology related to wrong surface events. The results identified numerous recurring contextual factors in wrong surface events. While technology intended to prevent wrong surface events is improving, numerous shortfalls were identified that inhibit the system’s ability to effectively prevent such occurrences. Additionally, results showed an overall lack of awareness among pilots and a pilot training department of wrong surface events and their associated risks, suggesting that efforts to prevent wrong surface events through training are ineffective. The results give opportunities for human error mitigation strategies to be employed to reduce occurrences of wrong surface events

Prehospital Intubation and Outcome in Traumatic Brain Injury-Assessing Intervention Efficacy in a Modern Trauma Cohort.

BACKGROUND: Prehospital intubation in traumatic brain injury (TBI) focuses on limiting the effects of secondary insults such as hypoxia, but no indisputable evidence has been presented that it is beneficial for outcome. The aim of this study was to explore the characteristics of patients who undergo prehospital intubation and, in turn, if these parameters affect outcome. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Patients ≥15 years admitted to the Department of Neurosurgery, Stockholm, Sweden with TBI from 2008 through 2014 were included. Data were extracted from prehospital and hospital charts, including prospectively collected Glasgow Outcome Score (GOS) after 12 months. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression models were employed to examine parameters independently correlated to prehospital intubation and outcome. RESULTS: A total of 458 patients were included (n = 178 unconscious, among them, n = 61 intubated). Multivariable analyses indicated that high energy trauma, prehospital hypotension, pupil unresponsiveness, mode of transportation, and distance to the hospital were independently correlated with intubation, and among them, only pupil responsiveness was independently associated with outcome. Prehospital intubation did not add independent information in a step-up model versus GOS (p = 0.154). Prehospital reports revealed that hypoxia was not the primary cause of prehospital intubation, and that the procedure did not improve oxygen saturation during transport, while an increasing distance from the hospital increased the intubation frequency. CONCLUSION: In this modern trauma cohort, prehospital intubation was not independently associated with outcome; however, hypoxia was not a common reason for prehospital intubation. Prospective trials to assess efficacy of prehospital airway intubation will be difficult due to logistical and ethical considerations