Helicopter pilots' views of air traffic controller responsibilities: a mismatch

Date published

2018-02-21

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Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Taylor and Francis

Department

Type

Article

ISSN

0014-0139
https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2018.1440635

Format

Citation

Daniel Martin and Jim Nixon. Helicopter pilots' views of air traffic controller responsibilities: a mismatch. Ergonomics, Volume 62, 2019 - Issue 2: Ergonomics and Human Factors in Aviation, pp. 268-276

Abstract

Controllers and pilots must work together to ensure safe and efficient helicopter flight within the London control zone. Subjective ratings of pilot perception of controller responsibility for five key flight tasks were obtained from thirty helicopter pilots. Three types of airspace were investigated. Results indicate that there is variation in pilot understanding of controller responsibility compared to the formal regulations that define controller responsibility. Significant differences in the perception of controller responsibility were found for the task of aircraft separation in class D airspace and along helicopter routes. Analysis of the patterns of response suggests that task type rather than the airspace type may be the key factor. Results are framed using the concept of a shared mental model. This research demonstrates that pilots flying in complex London airspace have an expectation of controller responsibility for certain flight tasks, in certain airspace types that is not supported by aviation regulation.

Description

Software Description

Software Language

Github

Keywords

Transportation safety, shared mental model, helicopter, air traffic controller

DOI

Rights

Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International

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