**National Plan for Civil Aviation Human Factors:**

**An Initiative for Research and Application**

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Department of Defense

Federal Aviation Administration

**First Edition**

**National Plan for Civil Aviation Human Factors:**

**An Initiative for Research and Application**

> **Executive Summary**

Human factors related aviation incidents and accidents remain subjects
of great public concern. Despite the aerospace industry's success at
developing ever more sophisticated and reliable technology, the
proportion of human error-related incidents and accidents remains
remarkably constant. This fact, combined with projected growth rates and
the requirement to increase productivity, resulted in considerable
attention to human factors research and application programs over the
last several years. Valuable programs in aviation human factors have
been underway for many years at the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and
Department of Defense (DOD), as well as in academic and industry
sectors. However, to continue to enhance this progress toward safety and
productivety goals, increased coordination, funding, and long-term, high
level management support in government and industry is needed. This
initiative outlines a coherent national agenda containing two major
elements aimed at achieving this outcome. The first element focuses on
five research thrusts.

> • **Human-centered automation**
>
> • **Selection and training**
>
> • **Human performance assessment**
>
> • **Information management and display**
>
> • **Bioaeronautics**

The second element focuses on opportunities for improving the
application of research results to planned and ongoing programs. Too
often, government, academic, and industry programs lack the mechanisms
to effect the transfer of the human factors knowledge contained in
research products. Implementation of the following four management
actions is essential to institutionalize human factors activities in the
workplace and to maximize the benefit of a national human factors
program.

• **Establish and implement the policies and processes necessary to
create an environment for change**

**• Develop human factors education and training programs at all
levels**

• **Equip personnel and facilities with modern tools and techniques of
the human factors engineering discipline**

• **Develop and maintain the infrastructure to translate and disseminate
human factors products, and guide the organization's functions involving
the human component**

The aviation community plays a fundamental role as both the initiator
and the recipient of research and application activities. As initiator,
the aviation community causes federal agencies and their
contractor/academic support organizations to respond to aviation
requirements through need definition, budget influence, and research
support. As the recipient, the aviation community benefits by accepting
and using the research and application products. This document
identifies near- and long-term needs, assesses the progress of research,
and provides mechanisms for implementation. The publication of this
document represents one of several necessary steps to establish and
maintain a coordinated national human factors program for civil
aviation. Continued emphasis on research activities over the long-term
as well as sustained management support for program implementation and
technology transfer are needed. This initiative describes these
sustaining activities which involve an iterative process for initiators,
performers, and recipients. If properly implemented and adequately
supported, the [National Plan for Civil Aviation Human
Factors]{.underline} will lead to significant improvements in overall
system safety, efficiency, and capacity for the benefit of the ultimate
customer \-- the flying public.

> **TABLE OF CONTENTS**

FOREWORD vi

I. HUMAN FACTORS IN THE National AIRSPACE SYSTEM 1

Purpose of the Plan

Background

Strategy for the Updated National Plan

**II. research needs and objectives 4**

> Human-centered automation
>
> Selection and training
>
> Human performance assessment
>
> Information management and display
>
> Bioaeronautics

III\. ORGANIZATIONAL IMPERATIVES 15

> **FOR APPLYING RESEARCH RESULTS**

Policy and Process

Training

Tools and Techniques

Infrastructure

IV\. IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY 22

V. SUMMARY/ConCLUSION 23

Appendix A 25

Appendix B1-B3 31

> **FOREWORD**

In November 1990, the [National Plan for Aviation Human
Factors]{.underline} was published in two draft volumes under the
sponsorship of the FAA in coordination with NASA, DOD, other government
organizations, academia, and industry. Volume I provided a strategic
view of the National Plan and summarized the detailed technical agenda
contained in Volume II. The National Plan was released in draft form to
facilitate coordination and expose it to the review of a widely diverse
audience. Between then and now, changes in technologies, priorities,
organizational structures, strategic planning and perspectives within
aviation and associated organizations offer an opportunity to re-focus
the community on salient issues. Additionally, opportunities for
enhancing the human factors integration in the National Airspace System
(NAS) will result from improving the mechanisms for coordinating
research and emphasizing the management initiatives that address
persistent and pressing problems. Responding to these changes and
opportunities, representatives of the aviation community collaborated in
reviewing the needs and requirements for human factors research and
application. The following document represents a revised [National Plan
for Civil Aviation Human Factors]{.underline} in one volume that
provides the necessary linkage to the detailed research plans, programs
and processes employed within each participating organization. As an
overarching document, this initiative prescribes the central goals,
objectives, progress, and challenges for the long- and short-term future
of human factors research and application.

Sincere thanks are expressed to the many members of the aviation
community who, through their vigilance and dedication to aviation safety
and productivity, materially contributed to the revised Plan and
continue to foster greater consideration of human performance in
development and operation of aviation systems.

> To comment on the [National Plan for Civil Aviation Human
> Factors:]{.underline}
>
> [An Initiative for Research and Application]{.underline}, please use
> the
>
> enclosed FAA Memorandum form at the back of this document.

**National Plan for Civil Aviation Human Factors:**

**An Initiative for Research and Application**

> **I. Human Factors in the National Airspace System:**

***To enhance aviation safety and improve efficiency of***

***operations***

The purpose of the [National Plan for Civil Aviation Human
Factors]{.underline} is to describe the human factors actions required
by the aviation community to achieve and maintain the world's safest and
most efficient National Airspace System (NAS). It provides a framework
for the aviation community to initiate research and management
activities to produce and use technical findings. Two goals are
paramount\--reducing error in human- system interactions, and increasing
the efficiency of human-system performance. Attaining these goals
requires the following four iterative activities:

***Identifying operational needs and problems involving human
performance***

Appendix A represents a joint industry/government articulation of
current and persistent operational human performance issues that cut
across the aviation environment. However, identification of operational
needs and human performance is a continuous process because research
solves some problems while changes in technology, organizations,
systems, and operations introduce new ones.

***Guiding research programs in federal organizations to address
operational priorities***

> A substantial amount of human factors research currently exists,
> especially in the FAA, NASA, DOD, and the international community.
> Coordination among programs is necessary to promote efficient use of
> national resources, ensure that significant gaps do not occur, prevent
> unnecessary overlap, and evaluate the level of effort required to
> achieve priority objectives. Implementing mechanisms permit
> participation by the aviation community in identifying and addressing
> operational research priorities.

***Eliciting the participation of the nation's top scientists and
aviation professionals in government, industry, and universities***

> Research is ongoing in all three types of organizations with many
> positive results, but greater progress can be achieved. The community
> needs a stronger infrastructure to facilitate the exchange of
> information and collaboration in planning and executing research
> programs.

***Facilitating transfer of research***

***results to the operational***

***community***

In addition to merely publishing results in technical journals, human
factors experts must work directly with the operational community (e.g.,
organizational managers, airline training departments, equipment
designers, and certification personnel) to implement research findings
effectively. Evaluation of products prior to implementation and
establishment of appropriate feedback mechanisms are also necessary to
guide future research and its application.

The implementation section of this document describes specific but
flexible means to accomplish these four goals. The benefactors of
successful implementation are widespread across government and industry.
Within government, Flight Standards and Certification personnel gain
better knowledge of how aircraft flight deck and cabin design features,
as well as training and operational procedures, affect human performance
and safety; Aviation Security elements incorporate human performance
criteria in airport systems and staffing; and Air Traffic Control and
Airway Facilities acquire the information required to procure and
operate efficient error-resistant systems. In addition, manufacturers
gain the knowledge and information required to develop systems that
operate effectively within the NAS. Operators within the NAS achieve the
ability to apply more effective personnel selection and training
programs. General aviation receives equipment and procedures that
enhance safe operation at lower costs thereby increasing total airspace
system capacity. Together, these benefits accrue to the aviation
community and the flying public, substantially improving system safety
and efficiency. This implementation is dynamic, influenced by and
responsive to, the economic imperatives of the country; the increased
awareness of, and concern for, human performance in modern systems; and,
the enhanced technological capability and associated procedures (like
free flight) to respond to higher expectations for both safety and
efficiency.

**Background**

Recognition of the importance of human factors in the design and
operation of the NAS and its components is not new. As early as 1951,
under the direction of the Air Navigation Development Board, the Ohio
State University Research Foundation (overseen by the National Research
Council) conducted the first study calling for a major national research
program in human factors for air traffic control (ATC). Several other
efforts followed this study but to this date, no comprehensive,
coordinated aviation human factors plan has been successfully
implemented. The reasons for this failure include: 1) the noticeable
absence of long-term, high level support in many Government and industry
organizations; 2) inadequate funding in light of the magnitude of the
challenge; 3) failure of research organizations to coordinate human
factors programs effectively; and, 4) ineffective programs to transfer
human factors \"technology\" to industry and the operational community.

In 1988, the United States Congress Office of Technology Assessment
(OTA) published the results of an in-depth aviation safety investigation
in a report entitled [Safe Skies for Tomorrow: Aviation Safety in a
Competitive Environment]{.underline}. The report concluded that human
factors related research was not well coordinated among government
agencies and that research funding was inadequate. At the same time, the
Air Transport Association of America (ATA) organized a Human Factors
Task Force composed of industry and government representatives involved
in research and operations that offered similar conclusions and proposed
the development of a "National Plan to Enhance Aviation Safety Through
Human Factors Improvements." The ATA Task Force also made
recommendations regarding national research priorities. Aware of
increased public concern, the U.S. Congress in November 1988, enacted
new legislation, "The Aviation Safety Research Act of 1988" (Public Law
100-591). This legislation called for the FAA to augment its research
efforts in human factors and to coordinate programs with those of NASA.

Responding to the congressional mandate, FAA and NASA conducted efforts
to fulfill the coordination objectives set by Congress. They established
a senior level coordinating committee jointly chaired by representatives
of FAA, NASA, and the Department of Defense (DOD); developed Memoranda
of Understanding (MOU) for collaborative research in all areas of
aviation human factors; and organized Scientific Task Planning Groups
(STPG) for interagency participation in the development and publication
of a national aviation research agenda. Following the adoption of the
ATA objectives from the operational community and FAA prioritization of
its own operational and research and development (R&D) needs, the STPGs
(composed of leading scientists from diverse aviation human factors
disciplines and involved in research programs at FAA, NASA, DOD,
Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Department of
Transportation's Research and Special Projects Administration/Volpe
National Transportation Systems Center, and the United Kingdom's Civil
Aviation Authority) developed a technical program that would address
national aviation priorities over a ten-year period. The results of this
multi-agency collaborative process were first published in the [National
Plan for Aviation Human Factors]{.underline}, November 1990.

**Strategy for the Updated National Plan**

The revised National Plan re-emphasizes human performance from a NAS
perspective where the system encompasses the broadest interests of the
aviation community including flight deck, aircraft cabin, air traffic
control, airway facilities, aircraft maintenance, and commercial and
general aviation operations, as well as the regulatory and
organizational activities affecting these elements. This initiative
describes the contributions of NASA, FAA, and DOD along with structured
recommendations from the private sector of the aviation community. It
addresses current and future research needs and required implementation
activities arising from discussions within the public and private
sectors of the aviation community.

This initiative expands upon the original document and responds to the
many changes and experiences in the aviation community since 1990. It
emphasizes the federal agency efforts and private industry aviation
input necessary to develop and implement a broad-based, technically
sound national civil aviation human factors program. The initiative
represents commitments and views expressed by representatives of the
three federal agencies (FAA, NASA, and DOD) and industry and meets the
need to be customer responsive and fiscally responsible.

Two strategic foci are presented:

> • **A *research*** **focus to provide relevant human factors methods,
> techniques and data to meet customer needs**
>
> **• An** ***application*** **focus to accept, implement, and integrate
> human factors products into engineering development and regulatory
> activities of the aviation community**

The following sections describe each of these essential strategic foci
in greater detail.

> **II. RESEARCH NEEDS AND OBJECTIVES**

In addition to the Congressional mandate for a coordinated
research-based human factors program, the need for human factors
research stems from the realization that human error has been identified
as a causal factor in 60 to 80% of air carrier, commuter, and general
aviation accidents and incidents. While the approximate proportion of
incidents and accidents involving human performance considerations has
remained the same over recent years, the perspective from which people
view such error rates *has* changed in two ways\-- safety and
productivity.

First, from the safety perspective, the constancy in the rate of
detected errors attributed to humans provides little comfort in light of
the anticipated growth in aviation operations. Government and industry
studies show that if solutions are not found that reduce the current
rates of "human error" in accidents and incidents, increased use of
aviation transportation systems in the future will result in an
intolerable magnitude of loss (and cost). Furthermore, the persistent
nature of human error suggests that there is no guarantee the error rate
would not go up were attention to human factors less diligent. As
systems become more technologically reliable, only the ardent pursuit of
error-tolerant and error-preventive solutions will reduce (or even
maintain) the proportion of error attributable to the human.

Also from the safety perspective, identifying the sources of error
presents no simple task. Properly investigated and analyzed causal
factors cannot rely solely on first order attributions to "operator
error." It is now widely acknowledged that errors are largely a result
of a confluence of factors (rather than one simple factor), and that
these multiple components involve complex processes associated with
human behavior such as cognition, organizational dynamics, individual
differences, and how they interact with system design.

In addition to the importance of error frequency, the members of the
aviation community recognize the potential impact of a single error in
modern aviation environments (e.g., congested airways, larger aircraft,
populated urban development around airports, complex flight deck and air
traffic control technology). The growing consequences of error requires
greater attention to the role played by operations, systems management,
and support personnel in error recognition, prevention, and occurrence.
The complexity of the airspace system and its environment entails a
tighter coupling between the various components of the airspace system,
in which even a small deficiency in one area can result in, or be linked
to, a (potentially catastrophic) malfunction in another area often in an
subtle manner that is likely to be recognized only in hindsight during
an accident investigation.

The modern inter-dependencies of error, the tightness of aviation
component coupling, and the high consequence of error require stretching
human-system capabilities to enhance performance and to capitalize upon
technological advances in materials, avionics, data collection,
information access, and decision support systems. These technological
changes, as well as an increased expectation of the human to accommodate
them, create more uncertainties and require additional human performance
research to help develop future systems that are error-resistant and
error-tolerant.

Second, the economic imperatives for performance enhancements and the
public's expectations for increased efficiency reflect the productivity
perspective. In an environment where operating and support costs make up
80% of system life cycle expenditures (50% of which are directly
attributable to the cost of people), no operational system can afford to
ignore the human component. Even for those operations that depend
primarily on software, the human interface requirements represent 50% of
software development costs. Within an increasingly competitive and
global economy, and one in which inefficiencies are increasingly more
visible (e.g., wasted fuel, costly spares, equipment damage, delays, and
cancellations), both public and private constituencies demand greater
cost constraints as well as improvements in government's role,
industry's responsiveness, and coordination between the two. These
expectations of economic and operational enhancement come when
concomitant resource constraints impose greater demands upon the
research community to do more with less.

It is in the context of these changes that the aviation community
coordinated a revised response for the national research needs
(summarized in Appendix A), structure, and agenda by transforming the
eight objectives articulated in earlier versions of the Plan to the five
national research thrusts presented in this document. This structure and
agenda for a national human factors research program are responsive to
internal and external customers, technically cohesive, and thoroughly
coordinated. The five overarching thrusts for human factors research
projects cut across aircraft flight deck and cabin, air traffic control
(ATC), airway facilities (AF) systems and services management, aircraft
maintenance, aviation security, and aviation operations. The five key
research thrusts transcend organizational boundaries and agency unique
requirements to provide the information necessary to achieve
expectations for NAS safety and productivity.

**1. Human-Centered Automation**

Human-centered automation research focuses on the role of the operator
(active or passive) and the cognitive and behavioral effects of using
automation to assist humans in accomplishing their assigned tasks for
increased safety and efficiency. The research in this area addresses the
identification and application of knowledge concerning the relative
strengths and limitations of humans in an automated environment. It
investigates the implications of computer-based technology to the
design, evaluation and certification of controls, displays, and advanced
systems.

Automated systems designed from a technology-centered perspective tend
to place the human operator in a monitoring role. The development of
"human-centered" automation principles which enhance overall system
performance focuses on:

-   resolving issues related to the degradation of basic skills with the
    associated performance implications should the automation fail

-   overcoming the hesitancy of human operators to take over from an
    automated system even when there is compelling evidence of a problem

-   keeping the operator-in-the-loop and situationally aware of system
    performance

-   designing human-machine interfaces for advanced systems

-   balancing operator workload (high and low) associated with automated
    systems

The development of concepts and guidelines for applying human factors

in the design, development, evaluation, and certification of advanced

technology control and display systems for flight deck, air traffic
control, and airway facilities has contributed significantly to the
progress of human factors application in aviation systems. Other
products of these research endeavors include:

-   human factors guidelines for developing, testing, and certifying
    user-interface designs of various data link applications

-   empirically based recommendations on a modular approach to
    automating ATC

-   results of field evaluations conducted on automated tools to aid
    controllers in the safe, efficient management of arrival and
    departure traffic

Some of the challenges to be faced in the future are determining what,
when, and how much to automate; developing human interface standards for
controller and maintenance workstations; integrating the conceptual
models of human-system interactions into a working framework for problem
identification and resolution; and, determining how much automation is
enough to improve safety and efficiency under a range of operational
conditions. Further research is required to:

-   determine and analyze methods of automation management (such as
    providing fixed automation alternatives or employing adaptive
    automation)

-   identify the workload and performance implications of applying new
    automation to operators\' tasks

-   analyze new classes of error that result from new technology (such
    as displays, controls, or advanced automation concepts) and new or
    revised operational procedures

-   prescribe the proper role of the operator to avoid the human
    becoming a "systems monitor"

-   examine methods to articulate and coordinate a "human-centered"
    philosophy (vs. "technology centered" in which only residual tasks
    may remain)

-   assess the operator's role during system malfunction and restoration

-   enhance performance of less experienced operators and infrequently
    practiced skills

-   foster situational awareness especially at critical times

-   investigate how overautomation and lack of appropriate feedback to
    the operator create performance problems

-   identify the conditions that may lead to over-reliance or
    under-reliance on automation

**[Issues in Human-Centered Automation]{.underline}**

**Workload 1)** Too little workload in some phases of flight and parts
of ATC operations to maintain adequate vigilance and awareness of system
status; **2)** too much workload associated with reprogramming when
flight plans or clearances change; **3)** transitioning between
different levels of workload, automation-induced complacency, lack of
vigilance, and boredom for flightdeck, ATC, and monitoring of system and
service performance.

**Operational Situation 1)** The ability of operators to revert to
manual control when the advanced

**Awareness and System** automation equipment fails; **2)** an
inadequate \"cognitive map,\" or \"situational

**Mode Awareness** awareness\" of what the system is doing; **3)**
problematic recovery from automation failures; **4)** the potential for
substantially increased head down time; and, **5)** difficulty and
errors in managing complex modes.

**Automation 1)** The potential for controllers, pilots, and others to
over-rely on computer

**Dependencies** generated solutions (for example in air traffic
management and flight decisions);

**and Skill Retention** **2)** hesitancy of humans to take over from an
automated air traffic and flight deck system; **3)** the difficulty in
maintaining infrequently used basic and critical skills; **4)**
capitalizing upon automation-generated alternatives and solutions;
**5)** monitoring and evaluating pilot and controller skills where
computer-formulated solutions disguise skill weaknesses; and, **6)**
supporting diagnostic skills with the advent of systems which are more
reliable and feature built-in self-diagnostics (such as those in "glass
cockpit" systems and fully automated monitoring AF systems).

**Interface Alternatives 1)** Major system design issues that bridge all
aviation operations include selecting and presenting information for
effective human-computer interface; **2)** devising optimal
human-machine interfaces for advanced ATC and AF systems and for flight
deck avionics; and, **3)** devising strategies for transitioning to new
automation technologies without degrading individual or contemporary
system performance.

**2. Selection and Training**

NAS efficiency and effectiveness is enhanced through research to
understand the relationship between human abilities and aviation task
performance; to enhance the measures and methods for the prediction of
future job/task performance; to develop a scientific basis for the
design of training programs, devices, and aids; to define criteria for
assessing future training requirements; and to identify new ways by
which to select aviation system personnel. The recipients of research
findings on selection and training are flight crews, air traffic
controllers, AF systems management personnel, aircraft maintenance
technicians, airport security, and others in the aviation community who
contribute to safety and efficiency through staffing and training
decisions.

Interest in this area includes training for, and measurement of,
effective individual and team performance; assessing the appropriate
knowledge, skills, abilities and characteristics needed to excel in
highly automated environments; developing guidelines for effective
training materials and instructional delivery systems for individuals
and teams in the complex working environments; education, training, and
evaluation of countermeasures to stressors that impact on performance
(such as fatigue); assessing the impact of new technology on job
characteristics and requirements, and the associated consequences for
selection and training.

Progress made in high-fidelity real time simulation technology resulted
in significant developments in training with the use of Line-Oriented
Flight Training (LOFT) and Crew Resource Management (CRM) programs to
provide realistic training in flight crew coordination, judgment, and
decision making in flight operations. Aviation research accounts for the
initial development of:

-   an automated performance measurement system for evaluating flight
    crew training program effectiveness

-   tools and reference information for improved performance-based air
    traffic controller selection, training, certification, and retention

-   training and performance requirements for airway facilities
    technicians in a satellite-based environment to support future
    Global Positioning System (GPS) needs

-   visual and nondestructive inspection guidelines for aircraft
    maintenance

-   intelligent tutoring systems and job aids for industry aircraft
    maintenance technicians and FAA Aviation Safety Inspectors

-   CRM evaluation guidelines for pilots, cabin attendants, air traffic
    controllers, and aircraft maintenance technicians impacting system
    design, certification and regulation decisions, operations
    directives, and training procedures

Due to rapid changes in technology, the economic life of hardware and
software continues to decrease, requiring modification and upgrades
during their economic life. Therefore, to maintain the workforce's
skills, continuous training is required. The aviation industry must
devise modern approaches and conduct further research in selection and
training to accommodate the impact of advanced automation on the NAS and
meet the high performance requirements within resource constraints.
Selection and training research will provide the basis to accelerate and
improve the quality for acquiring and maintaining required skills for
aviation operations. Research must be pursued to:

-   implement modern team training concepts for enhanced coordination

-   create cost-effective new equipment training guidelines and
    procedures

-   define the changing profile of job-related characteristics needed by
    applicants

-   address training for mixed fleet and multi-cultured crews

-   devise efficient methods and tools by which to select qualified
    candidates without high attrition costs

-   evaluate and remediate skill decay for diagnostic and complex
    operational tasks

-   provide integrated team training for all aviation operations

-   develop training methods to promote optimum use of automation

-   develop and validate advanced training delivery systems that meet
    future personnel staffing and training requirements

**[Issues in Selection and Training]{.underline}**

**New Equipment 1)** Training pilots, controllers, security personnel,
and systems management

**Training Strategies** specialists to transition to new technologies
and the associated tasks for new equipment; **2)** new training concepts
for flight crews, controller teams, security staffs, and AF system
management teams; **3)** measuring and training for the performance of
new tasks associated with equipment predictive capabilities (vs.
reactive type tasks) for pilots and air traffic controllers; **4)**
methods to train personnel in the use of computer decision-aiding
systems for air and ground operations; and, **5)** improved strategies
for providing the required student throughput within training resource
constraints on centralized training facilities, training devices, and
simulation.

**Selection Criteria 1)** Evaluation of individual and aggregate impacts
on personnel selection policies of

**and Methods** changing requirements in knowledge, abilities, skills,
and other characteristics for flight crew, controller, and airway
facilities operations associated with planned and potential changes in
the NAS; **2)** expanded selection criteria for pilots, controllers,
technicians, and inspectors from general abilities to include both more
complex problem-solving, diagnostic, and meta-cognitive abilities as
well as the social attributes, personality traits, cultural orientation,
and background biographical factors that significantly influence
operational performance in a highly automated NAS; and, **3)**
development of measures to evaluate these more complex individual and
team-related abilities in relation to job/task performance.

**3. Human Performance Assessment**

Research under this thrust targets improvement in the understanding of
human performance capabilities and limitations in aviation and the means
to measure them. Cognitive and interpersonal skills of individuals,
characteristics of teams, and organizational factors directly shape the
safety and efficiency of aviation operations. This research will provide
information to improve safety and productivity through better equipment
design, training, and system performance.

Objectives of this thrust are to identify the intrinsic characteristics
of individuals and teams that determine how well they are able to
perform aviation tasks; to characterize the impact of environmental
(external and internal) and individual factors on human performance;
and, to improve and standardize methods for measuring human performance.

Applying research results in this area to current technologies proved
successful in providing insight and solutions to workforce performance
problems. Applications have resolved concerns in the areas of shiftwork,
fatigue, and work rest schedules as well as many of the effects of
organizational and management culture on human performance. Research has
provided effective means to use computerized, high-fidelity, real-time
simulation; and valuable procedural performance modeling. Progress has
also been made in enhancement of air traffic controller memory
techniques and scanning patterns.

Techniques to improve the quality of critical decisions must involve the
interaction of human performance monitoring, multiple resources in the
identification of potential environmental hazards, and varying levels of
risk management authority. Research is needed to understand better,
measure more effectively, and address more efficiently for teams and
individuals the areas of complacency, workload, situational awareness,
judgment, decision-making, and individual and team performance. Further
study is necessary in:

-   context-based analyses of operational errors

-   human aptitudes and limitations in operational terms

-   learned expectations and their interactions with system design,
    training, procedures, and level of automation

-   effective countermeasures to reduce errors and performance
    inefficiencies associated with social, domestic, and environmental
    stressors

**[Issues in Human Performance Assessment]{.underline}**

**Human Capabilities** Determining the measures and impacts of:
**1)**cognitive factors underlying

**and Limitations** successful performance in planning, task/workload
management, communication, and leadership; **2)** the ways in which
skilled individuals and teams prevent and counteract errors; **3)** ways
to reduce the effects of fatigue and circadian dysrhythmia on
controllers, mechanics, and flight deck and cabin crews; **4)** baseline
performance characteristics of controllers so the impact of automation
can be assessed; and, **5)** qualifying the relationship between age and
skilled performance.

**Environmental Impacts 1)** Assessing the influence of \"culture\" on
human performance including the

**(external and internal)** impact of different organizational and
ethnic cultures, management philosophies and structures, and procedural
styles; **2)** determining methods to accommodate mixed corporate,
regional, and national views of authority, communication, and
discipline; **3)** addressing variations in aviation equipment design
philosophies and training approaches; and, **4)** understanding
population stereotypical responses in aviation operations.

**Methods for** Devising effective aviation system monitoring
capabilities with emphasis

**Measurement** upon: **1)** expansion of the collection, usage, and
utility of human performance data and data bases; **2)** standardization
and improved awareness of critical human factors variables for improved
collection, classification, and use of reliable human performance data;
**3)** standardization of classification schemes for describing human
factors problems in human-machine systems; **4)** better methods and
parameters to assess team (versus individual) performance parameters for
flight and maintenance crews, air traffic controllers, security and
aviation operations personnel; **5)** improved understanding of the
relationship between actual performance and digital data measurement
methodologies for the flight deck to predict future air crew performance
based on trend data.

**4. Information Management and Display**

Research conducted under this thrust seeks improved safety and
performance by addressing the presentation and transfer of information
among components in the NAS including controller workstations, flight
deck, operational and airway facilities, and all the interfaces in
between.

This thrust seeks to decrease the high rate of incidents relating to
information transfer (cited in 70% of Aviation Safety Reporting System
incidents) which is, perhaps, the most common and persistent problem
facing the aviation system. Increased dependence upon sophisticated
information transfer technologies creates a need for additional emphasis
on understanding potential sources of error in this area. Objectives are
to identify the most efficient and reliable ways to display and exchange
information; determine what, when, and how one might best display and
transfer information to system components; design the system to reduce
the frequency of information transfer errors and misinterpretations; and
minimize the impact when such errors do occur.

Significant progress made in this technology-dependent area includes the
development of prototype information systems and improved methods for
display, documentation, and dissemination of aircraft maintenance and
airway facilities management information. Other achievements include:

-   design and evaluation of instrument approach charts and checklists,
    both paper and electronic

-   analysis of ATC/pilot communication errors in voice and data link
    operations

-   human factors guidelines to set policies for data link architectures
    and procedural links to flight management systems

-   human factors guidelines for industry and government communication,
    data exchange, and support infrastructure

-   assessment of the loss of "party line" information associated with
    data link implementation

-   establishment of units of measure for pilot/controller voice
    communications

-   job aids, intelligent tutoring, and electronic documentation for
    airway facilities maintenance technicians

-   provision of routing and aviation weather products via digital links

The aviation community needs to conduct further research to increase the
availability and quality of information exchange performance data;
establish information exchange guidelines and standards for various
modes and media; and, generally enhance the exchange of information
between people and between people and systems.

**[Issues in Information Management and Display]{.underline}**

**Information Exchange 1)** Identify requirements for access to critical
NAS communications for

**Between People** analysis purposes; **2)** determine the effects of
pilot response delays in controller situation awareness and
controller/pilot coordination (particularly with regard to delayed
"unable" responses); **3)** set standards for flight crew response to
messages; **4)** assess the changes in pilot/controller roles; **5)**
enhance the communication training for pilots and controllers; **6)**
identify sources, types, and consequences of error as a result of
cultural differences; and, **7)** develop system design and procedural
solutions for error avoidance, detection, and recovery.

**Information Exchange 1)** Assess and resolve the effects of data
communications on pilots/controllers

**Between** situational awareness; **2)** determine the best display
surfaces, types, and

**People and Systems** locations for supporting communication functions
in the cockpit, at the ATC workstation, and at AF monitoring and system
maintenance control centers; **3)** identify sources, types, and
consequences of error, and error avoidance, detection, and recovery
strategies; and, **4)** establish requirements and set standards for
alerting crew, controller, and system management personnel to messages
of varying importance.

**Information Displays 1)** Establish policies for operationally
suitable communication protocols and procedures; **2)** set standards
for display content, format, menu design, message displacement, control
and interaction of functions, and sharing; **3)** assess the reliability
and validity of information coding procedures; **4)** provide design
guidelines for message composition, delivery, and recall; **5)**
prescribe the most effective documentation and display of maintenance
information; and, **6)** prototype technical information management
concepts and automated demonstration hardware to address and improve the
content, usability, and availability of information in flight deck,
controller, aircraft maintenance, security, AF system management, and
aviation operations.

**Communications 1)** Devise methods of reconstructing the situational
context needed to aid in

**Processes** the analysis of communications; **2)** analyze
relationships between workload factors and errors in communication;
**3)** evaluate changes in information transfer practices; **4)** set
standards and procedures for negotiations and modifications to
clearances; **5)** establish procedures for message prioritization and
response facilitation; **6)** set standards for allocation of functions
and responsibilities between pilots, controllers, and automated systems;
**7)** provide guidelines on the distribution of data to, and
integration with, other cockpit systems; **8)** prescribe communication
policies related to flight phases and airspace, such as use in terminal
area and at low altitudes; and, **9)** determine the impact of data
communications on crew and controller voice communications proficiency.

**5. Bioaeronautics**

The bioengineering, biomedicine, and biochemistry associated with
performance and safety.

This thrust addresses enhancement of personal performance and safety by
maximizing crew and passenger health and physiological integrity.

Positive results have enhanced performance of rescue and firefighting
operations, passenger safety, and development of products and
information on the effects of drugs, alcohol, and combustion components
on aircraft occupant performance. Other areas of progress include:

-   quantitative biochemical and toxicological criteria for
    certification

-   functional passenger and crew breathing equipment

-   flotation device design

-   airman vision, cardiovascular, and neurological certification
    guidelines

Research supporting this thrust will address personal safety equipment
and procedure designs that do not impede performance; anthropometric and
demographic descriptions of aircraft occupants; and improved cabin
egress methods and procedures as well as enhanced rescue and
firefighting techniques. Additional research will be conducted in:

-   crew and passenger interactions in cabin environments of larger
    aircraft at higher altitudes and greater speeds and distances

-   performance impacts of new medications and other chemicals

-   medical information and equipment for improvement of personal
    well-being and in-flight medical care

-   minimizing the effects of illness and associated therapy on
    performance in aviation settings

-   laser safety and performance impacts

The National Plan outlines the human factors core technology research
agenda sponsored and managed by FAA, NASA, and DOD which is fully
articulated in each organization's research planning documents and
summarized in Appendices B1-B3 in this document. Specific research
projects and objectives are derived from customer requirements and
technology opportunities which serve to amplify the growing need for
greater understanding of team and individual capabilities and
limitations, and the relationship between humans and their working
environment. Modifying each organization's detailed research plans
involves continued collaboration among the sponsoring, managing, and
performing organizations to specify research priorities, final technical
approaches, organizational management strategies, anticipated
operational impacts, milestones, deliverables, and resources required.

> **III. ORGANIZATIONAL IMPERATIVES**
>
> **FOR APPLYING RESEARCH RESULTS**

Numerous human factors programs exemplify high standards in many
critical areas of acquiring and applying human performance information.
Yet, typically, even some of the best human factors programs fail during
the application phase. A large disparity still exists between the state
of the art and the state of the practice in aviation human factors.
System development, design, and procedures decisions continue to be made
on the basis of instinct and local conventions and traditions. Analysis
and studies of the human factors engineering discipline show that the
underlying reason for this results from the failure of these programs to
incorporate one or many of the critical elements necessary for proper
execution. Much of the leadership in the area of human factors
applications during the past ten years has been attributed to human
factors integration programs within the Department of Defense. The most
notable of such programs is the U.S. Army's MANpower and PeRsonnel
INTegration (MANPRINT) program which implements DOD's Human Systems
Integration (HSI) program and contributed to the construction of an
environment for enhanced integration of human performance considerations
with system acquisition programs. Based on exploration by various
working groups as well as findings from engineering research, analyses,
and studies conducted by government, industry and academia; successful
programs have advocated a multi-disciplinary approach to defining and
optimizing the user/system interface in which the concept of design
excellence is broadened to include the human operator, maintainer, and
support personnel. These approaches apply equally (when properly
tailored) to system development and procurement programs involving major
or minor acquisitions of hardware and software systems, acquisition of
non-developmental and commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) systems, product
improvements, change proposals, and the development of procedural
guidelines and regulatory requirements under which systems operate. Four
notable management actions are common to all exemplary approaches to
systems integration.

**1. Establish and implement the policies and processes**

**necessary to create an environment for change**

Within the scope of this action, procurement and regulatory policy,
organizational management principles, and organizational project or
product team operating practices affecting human factors are
comprehensively prescribed, conditionally tailored, and diligently
executed.

Achieving this management action requires two elements. First,
organizational functions must respond to clearly stated policy that
provides the visibility and top-down sponsorship for human factors
efforts. Bottom-up implementation is necessary always, but provides
insufficient momentum to carry human performance issues to the decision
makers at times of constrained budget and schedules. Policy and process
requirements include those that will designate and delineate
responsibilities to competent authorities, establish an organizationally
recognized champion for human performance causes, offer definitive
statements of support, fully describe the intent and content of human
factors requirements for developing programs, provide the organization a
human-centered focus, and establish controls necessary to support,
coordinate and execute human factors efforts in the organization's
functions.

Second, the aviation community must establish a systems approach to the
application of human factors. Doing so entails establishing systematic,
disciplined procedures for application to acquisition programs,
regulatory (standards and certification) functions, and internal
operations. The community must also consistently apply explicit
consideration of the human component which entails continuity of expert
effort in an iterative (both early and continuous) approach. The scope
of the application must be comprehensive, addressing all aspects of
human performance, staffing, training, safety and health, as well as
incorporating all phases of the program (including needs analysis,
requirements determination, trade-off analyses, cost/benefit analyses,
life-cycle costing, source selection processes, post-contract award
program activities, engineering design reviews, program management
reviews, and test and evaluation). Human factors must be an integral
part of all development and integration efforts, and be explicitly
considered in all analyses and decisions. Organizational elements as
well as companies competing for contracts must be required to formally
satisfy human performance process requirements, which will result in
increased human factors expertise applied to product or project design
and development, as well as integration of this approach into the
corporate culture. Thus, it is required to establish a view of the human
as an inherent part of the system and institutionalize this
user-centered approach (vs. a technology-oriented approach) within all
organizational functions and processes. Success depends upon human
factors being a proactive (not reactive) force for the improvement of
total system performance.

In addition to the many accomplishments achieved within DOD's
human-system interface programs, in 1993, the FAA adopted Order 9550.8
(formally establishing policy and responsibility for incorporating and
coordinating human factors considerations into all NAS programs and
activities) and, in early 1995, reorganized human factors research
program management. In a related development, the 1994 organization of
the NASA-Ames Flight Management and Human Factors Division preserved a
national resource for human factors, enabling them to continue to serve
the needs of the aviation community in research and application. While
there is evidence of recent progress, the aviation community is
addressing these objectives too slowly to fulfill visionary
expectations.

The situation continually facing many elements within the FAA, NASA, and
DOD is not unlike that others face in attempting "to do more with less"
or to systematize a human-centered approach. The developers of
successful programs attribute their human factors accomplishments
directly to the aggressive and highly visible support of senior
management officials. The initiative and leadership demonstrated by the
organization's managers is a major factor in the acceptance of the
program throughout the workforce. Once the management support is
established from the top, the details of a systematic process (for small
and incremental projects as well as large ones) must be developed and
applied to all functions. In order to derive the full benefit of a
human-centered approach, senior management must support the disciplined
adherence to human factors engineering policy and processes. This
requirement would enforce the consideration of human performance issues
at every major decision and event, and establish a formal process for
monitoring the institutionalization of human factors considerations.

**2. Develop human factors education and**

**training programs at all levels**

The scope of this management action involves those developmental
activities necessary to attain and maintain a workforce competent in
conducting and integrating human factors activities in organizational
functions.

This action seeks to provide the training and education necessary to
achieve a common awareness and understanding of human factors at all
levels of the organization as well as develop the specialized expertise
necessary to apply human factors to unique organizational functions.
Attaining this objective entails establishing evaluation and
developmental programs to identify and meet the demands of the
organization as they relate to system technology changes, new research
results, revised organizational missions, and the half-life of technical
knowledge. Officials who are aware of the long-term human factors needs
and current deficiencies must lead the evaluation and development
programs. They must employ human factors expertise in deciding who needs
training, what kinds of training, how much, how to accomplish training,
what frequency, what degrees of expertise are necessary, what
value-added sources are available, and the like.

Numerous human factors training programs emerged from various sectors
within the applications communities to fill the void in technical human
performance expertise. With very few exceptions, training programs
generally fail to meet the needs of the organization because they do not
adequately incorporate the following characteristics:

> • Treat the subject in an applied manner (i.e., integrated in the
> functional application)
>
> • Address the diverse elements in human considerations with an
> integrated approach (e.g., integrating the considerations of staffing
> with those of training, or those of safety with those of ergonomics)
>
> • Identify and address fully the required target audience
>
> • Entrust the responsibility to individuals expert in the specific
> subject matter and able to assess the quality of training and
> development programs
>
> • Emphasize the relationships between human factors components and
> those of other engineering efforts (e.g., between performance and
> configuration management, between training and testing)

Future requirements for personnel training and development present the
most challenging task ever encountered in the human factors workplace as
well as in other areas of technical expertise. Increased personnel
turnover, organizational turbulence, sky-rocketing costs in learning,
shorter education half-life, revolutionary technology changes,
accentuated value of skilled work, increasing cost of errors, greater
organizational dependence upon expert intellectual capital, and severely
constrained budgets all create an environment in which the training and
development of the workforce plays a critical role in meeting
organizational goals. Yet, new training techniques and sophisticated job
aiding provide excellent opportunities to meet these challenges. In the
future the community must: 1) accurately determine skill requirements
and 2) develop them in a cost-effective manner. To do so entails
assessing how well the current expertise will satisfy future needs,
evaluating how productively the knowledge available is being used to
bridge the gaps between the islands of knowledge among various
disciplines and functions, and quantitatively and qualitatively
measuring the value of individual and organizational wisdom, experience,
and background. The future path for training and development efforts is
to view human capital as a source of innovation.

**3. Equip personnel and facilities with modern tools and**

**techniques of the human factors engineering discipline**

The scope of this action includes acquiring the technical facilities,
tools, equipment, techniques, methods, standards, measures, data,
handbooks and guides needed to properly support the application of human
factors information to regulatory and acquisition functions.

The objectives of this management initiative are to enhance the
capabilities and productivity of the organization's workforce by placing
within their hands the proper instruments of the human factors
discipline. It is to be a workforce multiplier, increasing the speed,
accuracy, and value of human factors efforts. It involves providing the
necessary tools and support to facilitate:

> • Quantification of human variables affecting performance
>
> • Standardization and consistency in application
>
> • Reduction of cost associated with development work in human factors
> applications
>
> • Promotion of early and systematic accommodation of human
> considerations
>
> • Incorporation of human performance and usability as inherent parts
> of system requirements and test and certification plans
>
> • Translation of human performance issues into the decision maker\'s
> language
>
> • Focusing on performance-based user acceptance, usability, and
> operational suitability

Much progress has been made in the development of methods and techniques
for applying human factors in keeping with technological changes. The
use or application of these methods and techniques, however, is the key
issue for consideration. A recent DOD study

surveyed more than 500 tools and techniques that assist in the practice
of human factors engineering. The tools and techniques range widely in
scope, complexity, application, cost, utility, availability, and ease of
use. For most applications within the aviation community, the issue
concerning human performance methods is not about the development of new
tools and techniques, but about how to place the information and tools
that already exist into the hands of the people who need and can use
them.

In a related development, one valuable tool emerging to support the
human factors community is the National Plan Relational Data Base. In
cooperation with FAA and NASA, the DOD Manpower and Training Research
Information System (MATRIS) Office, a division of the Defense Technical
Information Center (DTIC), established a human factors front end to the
vast data base of research currently supported by the DOD. By adding
abstracted information about NASA and FAA research addressing National
Plan priorities to the already existing DOD research data base, the
aviation community can access information about what research is being
done and by whom. As this data base matures, it will bring together
large bodies of disparate information about work in progress at FAA,
NASA and DOD, as well as national and international human factors
research issues and planned research projects. The development of this
data base allows users from different backgrounds to access information
that is relevant to their needs, and it enables prompt updating of
detailed elements of the research agenda as human factors priorities
change and results become available. Users are able to retrieve
information on current and needed research in aviation human factors,
categorized by associated thrusts, sponsors, and human factors key
words. Names of responsible and performing organizations are provided,
so interested persons are able to access information about findings and
planned follow-up research. Perhaps the most valuable contribution of
the National Plan Relational Data Base is the improved opportunity for
researchers and program managers across the aviation community to share
information about relevant research and findings.

There is still a need for efforts that focus on the development of
standards and facilities that support state-of-the-art human factors
research and engineering activities. The challenge for the aviation
human factors community is to interject critical human performance
information into the product/project decision process sufficiently early
and adequately quantified to enable a confident assessment of the risk
and sensitivity to human considerations. The needs of the future will
require the availability of tools and techniques to accomplish the
following:

> • Provide baseline quantification of human performance variables
>
> • Assess and reduce the human resource component of life cycle cost
> (e.g., staffing and training)
>
> **•** Enhance systematic early warnings of human error probabilities
> and consequences
>
> • Identify performance standards for industry
>
> • Facilitate consistency of effort and capture lessons learned
>
> • Increase early design \"trade-offs\" and sensitivity to human
> factors considerations
>
> • Use human factors tools to push technology (i.e., be a technology
> driver vs. a constraint)

**4. Develop and maintain the infrastructure to translate**

**and disseminate human factors products, and guide the**

**organization's functions involving the human component**

Both the people and organizational structures needed to support the
research and application of human factors principles and techniques
exist within the scope of this action. In addition to the number of
human factors experts needed, equally important are the background,
experience, and organizational setting for this workforce.

To develop a competent human factors workforce depends on the expertise
available for application of human factors to projects and the
consistency with which human factors professionals are involved in work
being done within an organization. Factors for consideration in the
development of such a workforce include:

-   the length, breadth, and type of individual and collective
    experience

-   the engineering, social science, and behavioral science disciplines
    represented

-   the continuity of human factors technical expertise to projects
    during critical phases of development and decision making

Few would dispute that strong leadership and the enthusiastic support of
senior management are necessary to maintain a competent human factors
component within an organization. In many organizational settings,
people do not sufficiently understand or support the human factors
discipline, despite public pronouncement of its critical importance.
There are only rare evidences of organizations that have acquired,
sustained, and effectively utilized technically superior and
organizationally integrated human performance expertise for lengthy
periods. The organizations achieving that status implement management
initiatives that include:

> • Redirection of resources to meet human factors requirements
>
> • Establishment of high levels of visibility and responsibility for
> user-centered concepts
>
> • Exploitation of expert knowledge in the use of human factors tools,
> data bases, techniques (i.e., knowing what works, what doesn't and
> when) to conserve critical resources
>
> • Nurturing the growth of human factors knowledge in application areas
> (e.g., regulation, certification, operations, acquisition)

To integrate human performance considerations into the development of
products, those responsible for the outcome of the effort must have
easily accessible, well-qualified human factors expertise to provide the
necessary data and information on human capabilities and limitations in
a usable form. Development of the human factors infrastructure necessary
to achieve stated organizational goals requires:

> • Recognition of human factors as an essential core discipline in
> organizational functions
>
> • Leverage of supplemental support (contracted or borrowed) with
> sufficient resident human factors expertise within a well coordinated,
> centrally guided program
>
> • Use of human factors experts as the agency's "smart buyer" for
> human-oriented research and applications work
>
> • Centralized control of research and application human factors
> resources to achieve crucial coordination and critical mass
> requirements (at least until fully institutionalized processes are
> attained)
>
> • Direct coordination and contact of human factors personnel with
> operational communities
>
> • Capitalizing upon the synergy created by the interdependence of
> human factors domains (i.e., training, human engineering, personnel
> staffing, health and safety)

Whether or not the new hardware, software, procedures, and training are
effectively transferred to the aviation community will depend upon the
degree of success in resolving human factors problems in aviation
equipment, procedures, and systems. This means that human factors
principles must be applied at the earliest stages of programs for new
aircraft, air traffic control, airway facilities, security, and aviation
operations technology and continue through full implementation.
Selection and training of the right people to operate within the system
is crucial, and they must have modern tools and techniques capable of
identifying and rectifying human performance problems. For this to
occur, an organizational commitment to a decision-making process must be
in place that formally considers the human factors implications of every
facet of the aviation system. This formal process must have the support
of the highest levels of management in the aviation community. Moreover,
it must become an integral and institutionalized element in the
\"culture\" of the organization.

> **IV. IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY**

Establishing and maintaining a national planning process is necessary to
resolve many of the persistent concerns in human factors research and
application. This process entails maintaining the [National Plan for
Civil Aviation Human Factors]{.underline} as a vehicle for describing
the actions required to address human factors; exercising a disciplined
collaboration of human factors efforts that ensures comprehensive
interagency coordination at all levels; and, executing the broad
long-term programs delineated within this document as well as
organizational plans summarized by example products in Appendices B1-B3.

This initiative and its predecessor documents repeatedly list
interagency coordination and cooperation as pivotal to the success of
any national plan for human factors. Participants in the national
planning process cite the lack of senior level support and ineffective
coordination among research organizations as a significant impediment to
national human factors planning and execution efforts. To help
orchestrate support and coordinate human factors requirements and time
frames for program implementation, this initiative structures individual
organizational programs and projects into the five agreed-upon research
thrusts. To achieve mutual requirements identification, research project
comparison, joint program planning, and cooperative product transition,
this initiative commits to enhancing current coordination mechanisms
(such as coordinating and advisory committees, working groups, and
cooperative research agreements) and to developing a formalized process
beginning in fiscal year 1995, under the auspices of a FAA/NASA/DOD
human factors advisory group, whereby: 1) users/customers/sponsors
express and define needs and requirements to each other and to research
providers across agencies; 2) researchers describe programs and products
that either address specific requirements or are exploratory and
developmental; and, 3) researchers and customers work together to
develop investment strategies and evaluate progress and coordinate new
product applications. This process shall include:

-   Annual identification/validation of technological and operational
    deficiencies and opportunities for inputs to human factors research
    needs

-   Structured monitoring, assessment, and review of research progress
    and products

-   Communication of major findings and results of research among
    developing agencies and potential customers

-   Coordinated planning and monitoring by federal agencies

-   Establishment of specific technology transfer steps for major
    products and research domains

-   Verification and validation of products by the customer community
    with feedback to the federal agencies

-   Public coordination, documentation, and dissemination of plans and
    products

> **V. SUMMARY/CONCLUSION**

This initiative provides a framework for the development and
implementation of a coherent, coordinated national aviation human
factors effort that meets the short- and long-term operational
requirements for "core" and applied human factors technologies and
information. It defines the environment for transferring that
information to the organizations, missions, functions and projects of
our national aviation community (including government, industry, and
academia). It is important to recognize that the publication of this
initiative represents just one of the necessary steps toward achieving
the vision for a national human factors program. Implementation plans at
every organizational level are also required to delineate
responsibilities, establish needs and priorities, monitor technical
programs, assess progress, and budget and allocate resources to support
unique and common objectives. The National Plan, if properly implemented
and adequately supported, provides the structure for institutionalizing
the consideration of human performance issues and reducing many of the
operationally significant human performance challenges facing the
nation's aviation system.

The thrust objectives and required actions espoused by this initiative
represent the most operationally significant issues for both the long
and the short run. It seeks to maintain a balance between short- and
long-range research and application needs \-- attempting to address
today's problems where possible while identifying long-term strategies
to enhance the aviation system of the future. In order to apply human
factors knowledge to the design of a NAS component to be introduced 5 to
10 years in the future it must be available today. One may also express
this observation as part of a general industry and operational community
frustration that research never solves problems fast enough. However, a
corollary of this assertion is that a more serious investment in human
factors research 5-10 years ago would have placed today's designers,
developers, and regulators in a better position to make contemporary
decisions. Thus, there is an important role for long-term as well as
short-term efforts as a "capital investment" in tomorrow's systems and
procedures. Success will depend upon the extent to which senior
management creates the visibility, funding, training, and staffing
necessary to fulfill human factors research and application objectives.

**Appendix A: Industry/Government Task Force**

**Research Requirements and Priorities**

**Overview**

This appendix summarizes the information contained in the [National Plan
to Enhance Aviation Safety Through Human Factors
Improvements]{.underline} prepared for the Air Transport
Association/Industry Human Factors Task Force. This summary conveys the
general framework established in the ATA plan for organizing high
priority human factors requirements. These requirements are of great
importance to the aviation industry because most aircraft accidents are
caused, wholly or in part, by human error. The ATA document is organized
into six parts. The philosophy statement describes the purpose of the
Plan summary. The problem statement describes the need for a strong
human factors program. The driving factors section identifies the
factors that drive the need for ongoing human factors research. The
requirements areas and domains section contains ten general categories
of human factors efforts that must be pursued within each aviation
domain. The needs section describes the national commitment,
administrative structure, and resources required to effectively meet
aviation human factors needs.

> **Philosophy Statement**

Through the process of developing the revised [National Plan for Civil
Aviation Human Factors]{.underline}, both government and industry
leaders agree on the following:

> 1\. In order for the problems of human performance to be properly
> addressed, the discipline of human factors must be recognized and
> supported as a core technology.
>
> 2\. This recognition and support is necessary from the highest levels
> of management in both government and industry.
>
> 3\. Funding and organizational structures need to be put in place in
> order to demonstrate commitments and establish the necessary
> foundation and management mechanism required to maintain this program.
>
> 4\. Once in place, these structures and funding must receive
> continuous and energetic commitment from management in order to remain
> effective.
>
> **Problem Statement**

New technology using increasing automation has brought the promise of
more efficient, cost-effective, and safer
human-operated/machine-assisted systems. But recent experience with
current systems has introduced concerns about the ability to design and
manage highly automated systems without compromising safety, while
keeping cost at an acceptable level. Much of the concern stems from the
fact that despite the aerospace industry's success at developing
ever-more sophisticated and reliable technology, the percentage of human
error-related incidents and accidents has remained high. The economic
impact of poor design, in terms of redesign, retrofitting, and unplanned
training costs, has been significant, and future costs related to
manpower and training are expected to increase as the demographics of
the future workforce change dramatically. Despite the continued need for
comprehensive human factors research and applications, support for human
performance initiatives has waned in recent years.

> **Driving Factors**

Many human errors that lead to accidents can be attributed to unforeseen
effects of new technologies, new operational procedures, and changing
organizations. Aviation exists in an extremely complex and dynamic
environment, and many factors can affect safety. As these factors
change, the consequences of these changes on pilots, cabin crews, air
traffic controllers, maintenance personnel, and airline operations
personnel must be understood and dealt with before they cause accidents.

**Technology** New aircraft and air traffic control systems are
introducing higher levels of automation and complexity. The impacts of
these changes on operator performance must be anticipated during system
development, and systems must include error-tolerant and error-resistant
designs to enhance performance and minimize the likelihood and severity
of human factors errors.

**Air Traffic** The future air traffic management environment will
fundamentally change

**Management** the ways pilots and air traffic controllers operate
within the system. Salient

**Environment** changes include data link communications and terminal
area productivity technologies that automate traffic flow into the
terminal environment.

**NAS Infrastructure** The infrastructure which produces the National
Airspace System services utilized by air traffic controllers and the
flying public is becoming much more complex and dependent on each of the
systems within it. The impact of these highly complex massive automated
systems must be determined to reduce chances and consequences of error
and to increase productivity.

**Demographics** The future pilot population will likely be different
from the current population. Fewer pilots trained by the military are
likely to be available, and airlines may be required to rely more on "ab
initio" training. In addition, changing skill levels and workforce
demographics may affect the selection and training of all members of the
aviation team: pilots, controllers, cabin personnel, maintenance
personnel, and airlines operations personnel. The nature and effects of
these changes must be anticipated in order to develop the right
standards and regulations for the future.

**Organizations** The workplace itself is becoming much more dynamic,
with old organizations dying, new ones being born, and others changing
rapidly. Individual workers may have to move quickly from job to job,
and the traditional promises of organizational security may no longer be
available. These changes pose great challenges to ensuring the safety
and stability of the overall aviation system while accommodating the
changing needs of organizations and individuals.

**Cultural** Just as the domestic workplace is becoming more dynamic,
organizations are also becoming increasingly international. Aviation
standards and practices that are incompatible with cultural expectations
will lead to errors and unsafe practices.

**Economic** The aviation industry has been among the industries hardest
hit in the latest economic downturn. Several major carriers have ceased
operating and others are in or are emerging from bankruptcy. The
sensitivity of the aviation industry to economic cycles makes the
importance of human performance and optimal allocation of human
resources even more critical.

> **Requirement Areas and Domains**

This section contains ten general requirement areas within the aviation
domains. Priorities (will be) determined by surveying representatives of
each of these domain areas. The Requirement Areas establish a permanent
general framework for more specific research needs which will be
released each year to determine funding priorities. In the following,
these general requirement areas are listed along with specific research
needs closely aligned to the research agenda contained in this current
version of the FAA/NASA/DOD [National Plan for Civil Aviation Human
Factors]{.underline}.

**[Requirement Area]{.underline}**

**[Specific Research Need]{.underline}**

**1.** Determine how automation should be used and how it should not be
used.

2\. Balance benefits of automation with the need for human authority and
responsibility.

3\. Determine what information and feedback operators need to stay
aware, in control, and able to intervene into automated processes.

Develop a "human-centered automation" philosophy for system design.

Apply a "human-centered automation" philosophy to systems.

Ensure that human operators develop and maintain the skills needed to
intervene. Apply a "human-centered automation" philosophy to displays
and controls.

**[Requirement Area]{.underline}**

**[Specific Research Need]{.underline}**

**4.** Determine the best methods for selecting, training, and
evaluating operators and teams in the context of advanced systems and
the changing environment.

Determine the changing requirements on personnel selection and training
imposed by changes in operator role from controller to monitor, and by
new technologies.

Determine selection and training requirements to ensure that operators
work effectively as part of a team.

Determine the best methods to monitor operator and system performance
during line operations.

**5.** Determine what policies and procedures will ensure appropriate
use of automation and effective human performance and team coordination.

Determine the most affordable methods of information transfer in the
future air traffic control, management, and service environment.

**6.** Determine what formats and interfaces will best support operator
and team performance.

Apply human-centered principles to display and control design. Ensure
that technical documentation standards and formats are developed to
minimize errors.

**7.** Ensure that the operators of various interacting systems maintain
coordination with each other to maintain and enhance safety and
efficiency.

Determine the best methods of information transfer in the future air
traffic control environment.

Determine the best methods to ensure coordination between controller
teams.

**8.** Determine the necessary procedures to ensure that human factors
information is applied to acquisition, certification, regulatory, and
operational activities.

Apply systematic methods to ensure that human factors considerations are
treated at all stages of the system development process.

**9.** Determine how physiological factors, psychological, and cultural
factors such as fatigue and duty cycles, affect operator performance,
and develop appropriate standards to ensure safety and efficiency.

Create and test education and training modules on strategies for
alertness management in flight operations.

Determine the effects of circadian dysrhythmia on operator performance
and develop useful countermeasures.

Define the interaction of disease, injury, and various therapies on the
ability to perform extended aviation operations.

**[Requirement Area]{.underline}**

**[Specific Research Need]{.underline}**

**10.** Determine the best methods to ensure passenger and crew safety
and survivability.

Determine the best standards for cabin configuration and materials to
enhance survivability.

Determine the best methods to ensure proper coordination between flight
deck and cabin crews in abnormal situations.

> **Needs**

Initial efforts by industry and government to address Human Factors as a
core technology and develop and implement the (1990) [National Plan for
Aviation Human Factors]{.underline} were quite successful. However,
recent changes suggest that the recognition and momentum gained may
indeed be completely lost if corrective action is not taken.
Specifically, budget reductions for basic human factors research which
are disproportionally larger than cuts implemented in other basic R,E&D
and in operationally related programs must be reversed. Furthermore, top
level commitments to human factors as a core technology must be
reestablished.

> **[The following steps need to be taken:]{.underline}**
>
> 1\. Renew our national commitment to improve aviation safety through
> human factors improvements and do so at all levels of government,
> particularly the leadership of the agencies and organizations which
> are responsible for and/or capable of directly supporting safety
> within the National Airspace System (NAS). Specifically, the
> Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration,
> the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Department
> of Defense need to restate their commitment to this goal individually
> and cooperatively.
>
> 2\. Provide funding sufficient to implement the [National Plan for
> Civil Aviation Human Factors]{.underline}.
>
> 3\. Establish, and/or maintain, core human factors research resources,
> facilities and technical expertise sufficient to address and respond
> to the high priority needs of industry. Many of these needs have
> already been identified and they will continue to be updated during
> the upcoming months and years as the industry moves to widespread use
> of satellites and digital technology to support the global air traffic
> management system.

**Appendix B1: DOD Implementation Plan**

The Department of Defense (DOD) completed and published a comprehensive
post-Cold War Science and Technology Strategy and Plan in September
1994. Its goal is to position the science and technology investment to
best support the wider range of missions faced by the military while
simultaneously dealing with reduced budgets. Additionally, it directs
technology development not only to improve system performance, but
specifically toward reduced cost and life-time affordability. The
science and technology program is formulated to satisfy national
security requirements. Much of the technology is, of course, dual use in
nature; that is, the technology has both military and commercial
applications. In such areas the Department of Defense efforts are
designed to capitalize on dual use aspects, both as a provider and a
recipient. The plan is organized into nineteen major technology areas
that describe the total Department of Defense Science and Technology
effort. It is a milestone in that it represents the first top-level
compilation of science and technology goals, challenges, payoffs,
funding allocations, and timeframes for product deliveries. The plans
will be periodically reviewed and updated to ensure that science and
technology investment is properly executed.

Science and Technology for the human receive great attention in the
Department of Defense Plan. Four of the nineteen technology areas are
specifically devoted to human issues: Biomedical; Clothing, Textiles,
and Food; Manpower, Personnel, and Training; and Human Systems
Interface. Programs in Human Systems Interface have the most dual use
application to Civilian Aviation Human Factors, as do some efforts in
Manpower, Personnel, and Training. The Human Systems Interface area for
the first time pulls together all programs aimed at boosting systems
performance and affordability by developing and transitioning technology
to ensure superior human systems operability, supportability, and
survivability. Its aim is to fully leverage and extend the capabilities
of operators and support personnel to ensure that fielded systems will
exploit the fullest potential of the whole team, irrespective of gender,
mission, or environment. Complex technologies are not only found in
military systems of course, but are pervasive from the factory floor to
the family living room. Linking humans effectively with these
technologies is key to economic competitiveness. The technology products
included in this [National Plan for Civil Aviation Human
Factors]{.underline} were directly extracted from the documented
Department of Defense plans in Human System Interface and Manpower,
Personnel, and Training.

**DOD SAMPLE PRODUCTS AND MILESTONES - FY 95-02+**

+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+
| **Sub-Area**   | **FY**          | **FY**          | **FY**         |
|                |                 |                 |                |
|                | **95-97**       | **97-02**       | **02+**        |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+
| **             | Methods to      | Demonstrate     | Adaptive,      |
| Human-Centered | Enhance         | Real-Time       | Intent-Based   |
| Automation**   | Decision-Making | Electronic      | Aiding         |
|                | Under Stress    | Associate       |                |
|                |                 |                 | Demo           |
|                | Automated       | Aiding          | Biocybernetic  |
|                | Real-Time       | Technology for  |                |
|                | Mission         | Distributed     | Interface      |
|                | Planning and    | Operations      |                |
|                | Vehicle         |                 | Distributed    |
|                | Management      | Verified        | Interactive    |
|                |                 | Crew-Centered   | Virtual Design |
|                |                 | Cockpit Design  | System for     |
|                |                 | System          | Crew Systems   |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+
| **Selection**  | Methods to      | Next Generation | Advanced       |
|                | Capture         | Aptitude Tests  | Predictors of  |
| **and          | Instructor      |                 | Job Success    |
| Training**     | Pilot Skills    | Intelligent     |                |
|                | for Jobs        | Tutor Authoring | Fully          |
|                |                 | System          | Networked      |
|                | Tests for       |                 | Synthetic      |
|                | Situational     | Flexible,       | Training       |
|                | Awareness       | Reconfigurable  |                |
|                | Skills          | VR-Based        | VR-Based       |
|                |                 | Trainers        | Intelligent    |
|                | Prototype       |                 | Tutor          |
|                | Virtual         |                 |                |
|                | Reality- Based  |                 |                |
|                | Trainer         |                 |                |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+
| **Human**      | Crew Station    | Electronic Data | Real Time      |
|                | Flight Test     | Base of Human   | Measures of    |
| **Performance  | System          | Factors         | Human          |
| Assessment**   |                 | Information     | Performance    |
|                | Human Mental    |                 |                |
|                | Workload Metric | Decision-Making |                |
|                |                 | and Situational |                |
|                |                 | Awareness       |                |
|                |                 | Metrics         |                |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+
| **Information  | Panoramic       | Lightweight     | Real-Time On   |
| Management and | Cockpit Display | Helmet Displays | Board Data     |
| Display**      | Demo            |                 | Fusion         |
|                |                 | 300 Sq. In.     |                |
|                | 3-D Audio       | Flyable Flat    | VR-Based       |
|                | Flight Demo     | Panel Display   | Cockpit        |
|                |                 |                 |                |
|                | Lightweight     |                 |                |
|                | Night Vision    |                 |                |
|                | System          |                 |                |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+
| **Bi           | Accommodation   | CAD Models of   | Fully          |
| oaeronautics** | Criteria for    | Impact Injury   | Integrated     |
|                | Women,          |                 | Crew           |
|                | Minorities      | Full Body       | Protection     |
|                |                 | Imaging Survey  | Systems        |
|                | Human CAD       | and Data Base   |                |
|                | Models for      |                 | Hi-Fidelity    |
|                | Equipment       |                 | 3-D Human      |
|                | Design          |                 | Models for     |
|                |                 |                 | Equipment      |
|                |                 |                 | Design         |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+----------------+

**Appendix B2: NASA Implementation Plan**

The strategic vision of the Office of Aeronautics encompasses the
identification, development, verification, transfer and applications of
high-payoff aeronautics technology to serve the United States. It seeks
to promote economic growth through superior, safe and environmentally
compatible products for the aviation community so that this community
has a world leadership capability through technology. This community
includes not only industry, but also the Federal Aviation
Administration, the Department of Defense, other government agencies and
academia.

Human Factors methods, techniques and findings emanate from the
accomplishment of several aeronautics strategic goals. Of particular
importance to the National Plan are three goals.

-   To develop high-payoff technologies for a new generation of
    environmentally compatible, economic subsonic aircraft, and a safe,
    highly productive global air transportation system.

-   To develop the technology base for an economically viable and
    environmentally compatible high-speed civil transport (i.e., speed:
    Mach 2.4, 5500 mile range, 300 passengers, 2-person crew).

-   To develop advanced concepts, understanding of physical phenomena,
    and theoretical, experimental, and computational tools\--including
    High Performance Computing and Communications technologies\--for
    advanced aerospace systems.

The first two goals are embodied in two major application domains: 1)
the Advanced Subsonic Transport (AST) Program, and 2) the High Speed
Research (HSR) Program. The third goal is addressed by the Critical
Technologies (CT) Program. Each of these goals is embodied in major
research programs. Each program, in turn, is documented in the specific
program plans, called the AST Program Plan, the HSR Program Plan, and
the Base Research and Technology Program Plan. Within each, the program
vision, objectives, milestones, deliverables and budget are stated.
Human Factors research projects are described along with major
milestones and products.

**Advanced Subsonic Transport:** AST focuses human factors research on
three areas:

1\. Terminal Area Operations, especially enhanced human factors
capabilities in reduced visual conditions on the ground and in terminal
areas for in-flight modes, for advanced communications via data link
methods, and for human-centered automation via enhanced aids. Major
milestones and products are:

> • Complete field evaluation of concepts, technology and procedures for
> extended terminal area air traffic controller automation aids - FY 96
>
> • Provide validated guidelines for robust Air Traffic Management
> operations with varying levels of automation and varying combinations
> of data link and voice air-ground communications - FY 97

2\. Rotorcraft Operations, especially low level flight management and
displays under poor visibility conditions. Civilian applications of
joint NASA-Army programs also are included, such as aids to emergency
medical and public safety operations. Major milestones and products are:

> • Complete simulation of MIDAS (a rapid prototyping design, test and
> evaluation tool) to analyze and evaluate proposed cockpit designs and
> crew procedures for civil tiltrotor terminal area operations - FY 96
>
> • Demonstrate operational procedures and guidance/displays for safe
> low-altitude, terminal area operations in civil rotorcraft - FY 99

3\. General Aviation human factors emphasizes increased safety and
decreased cost of single-pilot light transportation aircraft by
providing integrated cockpit systems, including simplified displays,
controls and operations. Major milestones and products are:

> • Flight evaluation of integrated controls and displays - FY 97
>
> • Validation of guidelines and standards in flight for certification
> of pilots and integrated controls and displays for reduced time and
> cost for pilot training - FY 00

**High Speed Research:** The HSR Program addresses human factors
technology for an evolutionary flight deck. Specific attention is given
to development of enhanced and synthetic displays that allow the crew to
taxi, take-off, cruise and land without direct forward vision under
Category IIIB equivalent operations. Major milestones and products are:

> • Demonstrate a real-time system landing an aircraft without forward
> visual aiding through enhanced/synthetic displays - FY 98
>
> • Demonstrate under operational conditions an enhanced/synthetic
> vision system for aircraft operations - FY 99

**Critical Technologies:** The CT program of research in human factors
focuses on the mid (i.e., next 5 years) to long range (i.e., beyond 5
years). Five related areas of research are supported: 1) Development of
models and data bases of human cognitive and sensory processes and the
psychophysical limits of human performance; 2) Development of
procedures, countermeasures to human error and processes to enhance
human performance; 3) Determination of aeronautical applications of
advanced human-system interfaces, including virtual reality; 4)
Development of human engineering dual use applications of the technology
within aeronautics and beyond, such as education and health care. Major
milestones and products are:

• Demonstrate a real-time system for measuring the level of pilot
awareness based on psychophysical data - FY 96

• Demonstrate operational alertness management expert system that builds
upon laboratory-based real time system - FY 98

• Demonstrate operationally a human error prediction system as applied
to the design of aircraft maintenance - FY 99

**NASA SAMPLE PRODUCTS AND MILESTONES - FY 95-02+**

+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+
| **Sub-Area**   | **FY**          | **FY**          | **FY**        |
|                |                 |                 |               |
|                | **95-97**       | **97-02**       | **02+**       |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+
| **             | Complete field  | Provide         | Demonstration |
| Human-Centered | evaluation of   | Validated       | of boredom    |
| Automation**   | concepts,       | Guidelines for  | and fatigue   |
|                | technology and  | Robust Air      | alertness     |
|                | procedures for  | Traffic         | monitor       |
|                | extended        | Management      |               |
|                | terminal area   | Operations with |               |
|                | air traffic     | Varying Levels  |               |
|                | controller      | of Automation   |               |
|                | automation aids | and Varying     |               |
|                |                 | Combinations of |               |
|                | Human           | Data Link and   |               |
|                | Automation      | Voice           |               |
|                | Conference      | Air-Ground      |               |
|                | (NASA, FAA, DOD | Communications  |               |
|                | sponsored)      |                 |               |
|                |                 | Demonstrate     |               |
|                |                 | Operational     |               |
|                |                 | Procedures and  |               |
|                |                 | Gu              |               |
|                |                 | idance/Displays |               |
|                |                 | for Safe, Low   |               |
|                |                 | Altitude,       |               |
|                |                 | Terminal Area   |               |
|                |                 | Operations in   |               |
|                |                 | Civil           |               |
|                |                 | Rotorcraft      |               |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+
| **Selection    |                 | Validation of   |               |
| and Training** |                 | Guidelines and  |               |
|                |                 | Standards in    |               |
|                |                 | Flight for      |               |
|                |                 | Certification   |               |
|                |                 | of Pilots and   |               |
|                |                 | Integrated      |               |
|                |                 | Controls and    |               |
|                |                 | Displays for    |               |
|                |                 | Reduced Time    |               |
|                |                 | and Cost for    |               |
|                |                 | Pilot Training  |               |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+
| **Human        | Complete        |                 |               |
| Performance    | Simulation of   |                 |               |
| Assessment**   | MIDAS to        |                 |               |
|                | Analyze and     |                 |               |
|                | Evaluate        |                 |               |
|                | Proposed        |                 |               |
|                | Cockpit Designs |                 |               |
|                | and Crew        |                 |               |
|                | Procedures for  |                 |               |
|                | Civil Tiltrotor |                 |               |
|                | Terminal Area   |                 |               |
|                | Operations      |                 |               |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+
| **Information  | Flight          | Demonstrate a   |               |
| Management and | Evaluation of   | Real-Time       |               |
| Display**      | Integrated      | System Landing  |               |
|                | Controls and    | an Aircraft     |               |
|                | Technology      | Without Forward |               |
|                |                 | Visual Aiding   |               |
|                |                 | Through         |               |
|                |                 | Enh             |               |
|                |                 | anced/Synthetic |               |
|                |                 | Displays        |               |
|                |                 |                 |               |
|                |                 | Demonstrate     |               |
|                |                 | Under           |               |
|                |                 | Operational     |               |
|                |                 | Conditions an   |               |
|                |                 | Enh             |               |
|                |                 | anced/Synthetic |               |
|                |                 | Vision System   |               |
|                |                 | for Aircraft    |               |
|                |                 | Operations      |               |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+
| **Bi           |                 |                 | Demonstration |
| oaeronautics** |                 |                 | of crew       |
|                |                 |                 | scheduling    |
|                |                 |                 | expert system |
+----------------+-----------------+-----------------+---------------+

**Appendix B3: FAA Implementation Plan**

The FAA manages and operates the National Airspace System and, as such,
is dedicated to contributing to a safe and efficient global aviation
system. Human factors research efforts within the organization support
both acquisition and operations requirements. In acquisition, system
specific research needs are addressed by integrated product teams (IPT).
Additionally, a core discipline research program exists to address basic
and applied research needs which cut across IPTs. The core program also
provides human factors and aviation medicine support for operations
activities in regulation and certification. The sample products and
milestones articulated in this appendix represent the focus and output
of the core program being executed by the agency.

A more detailed description of the program can be found in the FAA
Research, Engineering, and Development (R,E,&D) Plan which is published
annually and provided to the Congress in accordance with the Aviation
Safety Research Act of 1988 (Public Law 100-591).

**FAA SAMPLE PRODUCTS AND MILESTONES - FY 95-02+**

+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+
| **Sub-Area**      | **FY**          | **FY**          | **FY**       |
|                   |                 |                 |              |
|                   | **95-97**       | **97-02**       | **02+**      |
+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+
| **Human-Centered  | Safety and      | Flight Data     | Human        |
| Automation**      | Automation      | Sensor          | Centered     |
|                   | Level           | Integration     | Design       |
|                   | Relationships   | Report          | Guidelines   |
|                   | for Cockpit and |                 | for Future   |
|                   | Air Traffic     |                 | Flight deck  |
|                   |                 |                 | and Air      |
|                   |                 |                 | Traffic      |
|                   |                 |                 | Control      |
|                   |                 |                 | Automated    |
|                   |                 |                 | Systems      |
+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+
| **Selection and   | Advanced        | Crew Decision   | Validated    |
| Training**        | Qualification   | Training        | Executive    |
|                   | Program Model   | Guidelines      | Selection    |
|                   | for Air Taxi    |                 |              |
|                   | and Commercial  | Refined Model   | Validated    |
|                   | (Part 135)      | Advanced        | Air Traffic  |
|                   | Operators       | Qualification   | Controller   |
|                   |                 | Program for Air | Advanced     |
|                   | Revised         | Carriers, Air   | Systems      |
|                   | AC120-54 on     | Taxi, and       | Personnel    |
|                   | Advanced        | Commercial      | Selection    |
|                   | Qualification   | (Part 121 and   | Tools        |
|                   | Program         | 135) Operators  |              |
|                   |                 |                 |              |
|                   | Validated       | Recommendations |              |
|                   | Aircraft        | for             |              |
|                   | Certification   | Superv          |              |
|                   | Service         | isor/Managerial |              |
|                   | Supervisor      | Selection       |              |
|                   | Selection       | System Model    |              |
|                   | Program         |                 |              |
|                   |                 | Management      |              |
|                   | Validated Air   | Selection       |              |
|                   | Traffic Service | Criteria        |              |
|                   | Selection       |                 |              |
|                   | Criteria        |                 |              |
+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+
| **Human           | Initial         | APMS            | Methods of   |
| Performance       | Automated       | Specifications  | Assessing    |
| Assessment**      | Performance     | for Airline Use | and          |
|                   | Measurement     |                 | Enhancing    |
|                   | System (APMS)   | Operational     | Human        |
|                   | Prototype       | Error           | Performance  |
|                   |                 | Prevention      | in Future    |
|                   | Baseline        | Guidelines      | NAS Systems  |
|                   | Controller      |                 |              |
|                   | Performance     |                 |              |
|                   | Metrics for     |                 |              |
|                   | Tower, TRACON,  |                 |              |
|                   | and En Route    |                 |              |
+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+
| **Information     | Human Factors   | Expert System   | Human        |
| Management and    | Design          | for Aviation    | Factors      |
| Display**         | Guidelines for  | Safety          | Guidelines   |
|                   | Digital         | Inspectors      | for          |
|                   | Communications  |                 | Information  |
|                   |                 | Performance     | Management   |
|                   | Electronic      | Specifications  | in Next      |
|                   | Chart Design    | for Operations  | Generation   |
|                   | Guidelines      | Control Center  | NAS Systems  |
|                   |                 | Workstations    |              |
|                   | Initial         |                 |              |
|                   | Information,    |                 |              |
|                   | Display, and    |                 |              |
|                   | Procedure       |                 |              |
|                   | Criteria for    |                 |              |
|                   | Free Flight     |                 |              |
+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+
| *                 | Standards for   | Guidelines for  | Evacuation   |
| *Bioaeronautics** | Improved        | Dual Aisle      | Models for   |
|                   | Aircraft Child  | Evacuation      | Future       |
|                   | Restraint       |                 | Aircraft     |
+-------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------------+

**Memorandum**![](media/image3.emf){width="0.3993055555555556in"
height="0.3993055555555556in"}

> U.S. Department
>
> of Transportation
>
> **Federal Aviation**
>
> **Administration**

Subject: Date:

Comments on the [National Plan for Civil Aviation Human
Factors]{.underline}

To: All Recipients Reply to: FAA (AAR-100)

Attn: Mark Hofmann, Ph.D.

800 Independence Ave., SW

Comment Instructions: Washington, DC 20591

Please note the page number and paragraph in the

document that your comment references.