Automation and Human Factors in future Air Traffic Management

Abstract

A framework for implementing higher degrees of automation in future ATM systems based on biological, human automation principles is introduced. To investigate the effects of advanced automation support on operators' task- and workload, an exploratory pre-study was conducted with 7 ATCOs. Manual task execution was compared with a fully automated scenario, and an automated scenario with the option to manually intervene in automated flight paths. Subjective assessment of mental demand, taskload and workload were rated higher during manual trials compared to fully automated trials. Post-experimental interviews illustrated perceived difficulties related to the mixed system of automated and manually navigated aircrafts i.a. resulting from automation outages. Results exemplify the importance of collaborative automation systems that facilitate reciprocal anticipation of control actions