Fatigue Identification and Management in Flight Training: An Investigation of Collegiate Aviation Pilots

Pilot fatigue is a significant hazard affecting flight operations; Generally the product of one or more factors: Disrupted or lack of sleep; Inadequate food and or fluid intake; Mental; and Physical fatigue. Previous studies have focused on military and commercial flight operations; Little to nothing has been done to investigate fatigue identification & management by general aviation pilots

General Aviation Pilots’ Strategies to Mitigate Bird Strikes

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has partnered with the FAA since 1995. USDA has assisted the FAA with production of yearly and special reports on wildlife hazards to aviation: Develop or enhance existing wildlife hazard management programs (including pilots) Create refinements in the development and implementation of integrated research and operational efforts to mitigate the risk of bird strike

Airport Bird Hazard Management

Aircraft collisions with birds, also commonly referred to as bird strikes, annually cost the commercial aviation industry in Brazil at least $6 million in direct damage and associated costs and hundreds of hours of aircraft down time. Although the economic costs of wildlife strikes are extreme, the cost in human lives lost when aircraft accidents occur as a result of strikes best illustrates the need for management of the wildlife strike problem. Bird strikes have been an increasing problem for the aviation industry. Air travel has become widespread all over the world. The aircraft has played an important role not only for passengers and freight but also in tactical and logistical military operations. Therefore, collisions between aircraft and birds are of big concern. More than ninety percent of bird strikes with known locations occur on or in the vicinity of airports. Birds are attracted to airports for a variety of reasons, all of them directly tied to the bird’s survival. Many species have adapted to urban environments and find that airports, which usually offer huge areas of grass and pavement, are attractive habitats for feeding, breeding, and resting. Their basic needs increase the risks of bird hazard at airports unless an effective wildlife hazard management program be effectively implemented. More than just an inconvenience, bird hazard at airports is a real danger to air travelers and are costly to all concerned. The purpose of this paper is to provide scientific and technical information to assist airport personnel in developing and conducting a wildlife hazard management program to reduce the risk of bird strikes on and near the airport

High-Risk Wildlife Strike Regions: An In-depth Visual Representation of Wildlife Strikes at and Around Part 139 Airports in Florida.

Wildlife strikes with aircraft have been and continue to be a problem in the aviation industry costing millions of dollars in both damage and delays. This study used the geoprocessing information system ArcGIS to depict wildlife strikes at Florida’s 26 Part 139 Airports from 2012 to 2021. Importing reports from the National Wildlife Strike Database into ArcGIS, this study used symbology and geoprocessing tools to create a color/ size gradient that depicts the risk (number of damaging strikes out of known strikes) at each airport. Using an interactive map with ArcGIS Online viewers can observe then select each airports vector point and view a table containing the important information on that airports strike data. Data like number of strikes during time of the day, strikes per weather conditions, and whether the strikes were damaging or not, are contained in the online resource. Attempts to study and depict wildlife strikes are limited, the industry and researchers need to continue research on a localized scale to help mitigate wildlife strikes

2018 Bird Strike Committee USA Meeting

Offshore Aviation in Brazil Since1980 Air passenger and cargo transport to offshore platforms began in the 1980s. The largest customer in Brazil is PETROBRAS, which ranked fifth in 2011 among the largest publicly traded oil companies in the world. Air passenger and Cargo Transport Medical Evacuation Helicopter Maintenance Helicopter Transport of External Cargo

Competency Based Education: A Framework for a More Efficient and Safer Aviation Industry

Aircraft design and reliability as well as pilots’ education and training have steadily and significantly improved in the last 20 years. Nevertheless, high-profile accidents still occur, even when the aircraft and related systems are operating adequately. Controlled flight into terrain, runway incursions accidents, and loss-of-control-in-flight are examples of mishaps in which inadequate decision-making, poor leadership, and ineffective communication are frequently cited as contributing factors. Conversely, the investigation of accidents (e.g., US Airways Flight 1549, in US, in 01/15/2009) and serious incidents (e.g., JJ 3756, in Brazil, in 06/17/2011) have indicated that flight crews have to be flexible and adaptable, think outside the box, and to communicate effectively in order to cope with situations well beyond their individual expertise. Conventional flight training requirements generally consider only the so-called “technical skills” and knowledge. Interestingly, pilot’s competencies in important areas, such as leadership, teamwork, resilience, and decision-making are not explicitly addressed. The aviation system is reliable but complex. Thus, it is unrealistic to foresee all possible aircraft accident scenarios. Furthermore, there are many organizational variables that could have a detrimental impact in the flight deck of an aircraft. To further improve flight training, the global aviation industry is moving toward Evidence Based Training (EBT). EBT provides rigorous assessment and assurance of pilot competencies throughout their training, regardless of the accumulated flight hours. EBT programs must identify, develop, and evaluate the competencies required to operate safely, effectively, and efficiently in a commercial air transport environment. Moreover, EBT needs to address the most relevant threats according to evidence collected in aircraft mishaps, flight operations, and training. There is some emergent empirical evidence showing that high-quality education and flight training have a greater impact on efficiency and safety than just the total flight hours accumulated by entry-level pilots. Advanced Qualification Programs are utilized in Part 121 operations. A similar model with the development and assessment of defined competencies can lead to better education and flight training outcomes in collegiate aviation. In keeping with this transition to a competency-based educational model, and given an understanding of the benefits of an EBT program for aviation safety and efficiency, the Purdue School of Aviation and Transportation Technology is redesigning its professional flight program. The benefits of this program will include: a. The establishment of advanced training processes that will enhance the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and abilities by the future professional pilot workforce that meet or exceed safety standards; b. Amplifying quality of education and flight training over flight hours; and c. Developing empirical data to inform decision-makers such as program leaders and regulators. The goal of this transformation process is to develop a competency-based program that will attend to academic and regulatory requirements, and that are in alignment with the major aviation stakeholders’ standards and recommendations. It is important to note that a competency-based degree will require graduates to demonstrate proficiency in competencies that are valued by the aviation and aerospace industries. Therefore, this will be beneficial for both the graduates as well as the industry

Factorial Validity of the Flight Risk Assessment Tool in General Aviation Operations

The Flight Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT) was developed and is recommended by the Federal Aviation Administration to provide a solution of proactively identifying and mitigating risk before each flight. General aviation (GA) operators are encouraged to adapt the FRAT based upon specific operational characteristics. Currently, most safety management systems-compliant GA operators have implemented various versions of FRATs with different operational purposes. However, the FRAT could be inappropriately implemented because of the dynamic operational features of GA operations. The purpose of this study is to explore insights into potential approaches to validate the FRAT that is used for flight risk assessment in routine GA operations. A FRAT from a flight school regulated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 141 was used as a study case. In total, 1,832 sets of FRAT data were collected from flight operations between November 2016 and February 2017. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was adopted in this research. The CFA results indicated that the studied FRAT model did not provide good fit with the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) 5 0.13, standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) 5 0.08, comparative fit index (CFI) 5 0.98, and Tucker–Lewis index (TLI) 5 0.98. Based on the modification indices, the studied FRAT model was restructured by removing 11 risk items from the original 33 risk items. The new model fitted the data acceptably (RMSEA 5 0.07, SRMR 5 0.05, TLI 5 0.76, CFI 5 0.69). In addition, implications and directions for further study are discussed

An Analysis of Wildlife Strikes to Aircraft in Brazil: 2011-2018

Purpose: Aircraft accidents due to wildlife hazards have become a growing safety and economic problem to the Brazilian and international aviation industries. These safety occurrences have resulted in significant direct and indirect economic losses as well injuries and fatalities worldwide. The purpose of this study was to develop empirical information obtained from the analysis of wildlife strike and aircraft operations data in Brazil that could be used for accident prevention efforts. Design/methodology: The research team collected and analyzed aircraft operations as well as wildlife strike data from the 32 busiest commercial airports in Brazil, from 2011 through 2018. Researchers obtained the number of aircraft operations at each of those 32 Brazilian airports from the Brazilian air traffic operations annual reports published by the Air Traffic Control Department. Wildlife strike data from the studied airports were obtained from the Brazilian national wildlife strike database. Descriptive data analysis was adopted to provide an intuitive and overall trend of wildlife strikes at and the 32 busiest commercial airports in Brazil. Findings: Results indicate that the number of wildlife strikes at and around the investigated airports increased 70% even though the number of aircraft operations at these airports declined by 12% during the period studied. Birds were involved in 88% of the reported events. Most reported strikes (59%) and damaging strikes (39%) occurred during the arrival phases-of-flight. Most (33%) strikes were reported by airport personnel. A finding of concern was that the majority of wildlife strikes (97%) and damaging wildlife strikes (96%) occurred within the airport environment. Practical implications: Findings of this study could be used as the groundwork during the development and assessment of wildlife hazard management programs and other aviation stakeholders’ safety efforts to prevent aircraft accidents due to wildlife strikes. Originality/value: The current project contributes to the safety management of wildlife hazards in Brazil by conducting a comprehensive analysis of wildlife strike and aircraft operations data (2011-2018) in the 32 busiest Brazilian commercial airport

Measuring Fatigue and Sleepiness in Collegiate Aviation Pilots

The National Transportation Safety Board has communicated the need to reduce fatigue related accidents through the top ten most wanted list. Additionally, the International Civil Aviation Organization and Federal Aviation Administration have continuously promoted fatigue risk management. Most fatigue related research as well as safety standards in aviation involve air carrier and military operations. However, there has been a recent revival of fatigue related research in collegiate aviation. A recent study found that 85% of collegiate aviation pilots (n = 141) reported fatigue negatively impacted their flight training activities. Results of a qualitative study indicated poor knowledge and behaviors by Part 141 collegiate aviation students (n = 35) regarding quality and quantity of sleep, decision-making processes, and lifestyle choices. The current research study examines the sleepiness and fatigue of collegiate aviation pilots using self-reported scales. The Karolinska Sleepiness and the Samn-Perelli Scales measure the level of sleepiness and fatigue states, respectively. Thirty students (n = 30) were asked to track their fatigue and sleepiness levels four times a day, once a week, for four months, during the 2019 Fall academic semester. Researchers expect to gain a clearer understanding of how time of the day, day of the week, and month effect sleepiness and fatigue levels during flight operations in a collegiate aviation environment. Understanding these factors may help provide better safety promotion efforts such as training and education, fatigue awareness, and fatigue risk management standards. Findings of this study and opportunities for future research will be discussed

Mitigating the Risk of Bird Strikes: The Use of Virtual Reality During Flight Training

There were 193,969 wildlife strikes in the US from 1990 through 2017. Wildlife strikes annually cost the US civil aviation industry, on average, $186 million in monetary losses and 111,284 hours of aircraft downtime (Dolbeer & Begier, 2019). According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Aeronautical Decision-Making (ADM) is a systematic approach that encourages pilots to identify hazards and manage risks (FAA, 2016). Additionally, it helps aviators to make timely and safe decisions. Even though it is practically impossible to eliminate the risk of bird strikes, crewmembers play a vital role in the accident prevention process (Mendonca, Carney, & Fanjoy, 2018), especially outside the airport environment (Dolbeer & Begier, 2019). Crewmembers can mitigate the risk of aircraft accidents due to birds through adequate flight planning and the use of appropriate aircraft operating techniques, among other strategies