The efects of age and recency of experience on the completion of complex tasks in a technologically advanced aircraft
Abstract
When the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) instituted the FAA industry training standards (FITS) program in 1995, it was expected that FITS would mitigate the hazards present in technologically advanced aircraft (TAA) accidents. The 2010 Leon Groff NTSB report on TAA accidents rates does not support this conclusion. The Groff report showed that TAA have a higher fatal accident rate than conventional instrument equipped aircraft. The statistics also indicate that the pilots involved in these accidents are older and more experienced. This is a qualitative study which attempts to observe the effects of age and recency of experience in the completion of complex tasks using a Technologically Advanced Aircraft (TAA). All participants were asked to perform 10 non-flight systems tasks using a Garmin G1000® personal computer (PC) simulation program that increases in complexity (number of steps required to perform the function). The time to complete each of the ten tasks was recorded by timing device on a scoring sheet. The spacial dimensions of procedure, memory, attention, and technique were scored on a scale of 0 to 4 with 0 being no error on a scoring sheet. Video was recorded with no sound to later review the data for reliability purposes. It was expected that the observations would show no significant differences in the age groups for those who have had recent G1000® experience and significant differences in age groups of those who did not have recent G1000® experience (thirty plus days). The results of this study showed there were differences between the older and younger age groups. Older age participants did perform tasks slower than younger participants and committed more errors. Younger participants, though faster, were more likely to make impulsive decisions and therefore more attention based mistakes. Recency of experience was not seen to have a significant role. It is theorized that the reason for this may have been due to not using a long enough time period to observe time and error differences. A follow up study would be needed to confirm this. It is suggested that the approach to teaching TAA avionics should be multifaceted, specifically catered to address the brand and type of equipment installed in the aircraft, and the age of the individual being taught.
Degree
M.S.
Advisors
Lu, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Aerospace engineering|Behavioral Sciences
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