Airman Education Programs Topics of Interest
Spatial Disorientation: Trust Your Instruments
By Rogers V. Shaw, II
Spatial disorientation in aviation: What is it? Where does it come from? Can training eliminate it? These are typical questions that are frequently asked by pilots at air shows where we demonstrate the effects of vertigo with the Vertigon or the new portable spatial disorientation device. There are volumes written on the subject and yet, general aviation pilots still seem to have misperceptions about what it is, where it comes from, and how to cope with it.
Spatial disorientation is defined as: "A state characterized by an erroneous sense of one's position and motion relative to the plane of the earth's surface." How does this occur in an aircraft?
Pilots want "shoe leather" answers to keep themselves out of trouble in the air. We will briefly discuss the orientation senses, and one of the most common illusions experienced by pilots - the leans. more....
