FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
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Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-97/24

Title and Subtitle: Automation in General Aviation: Two Studies of Pilot Responses to Autopilot Malfunctions

Report Date: December 1997

Authors: Beringer, D.B., and Harris, H.C., Jr.

Abstract: Study 1 examined four automation-related malfunctions (runaway pitch-trim up, roll servo failure, roll sensor failure, pitch drift up) and subsequent pilot responses. Study 2 examined four additional malfunctions; two more immediately obvious (runaway pitch-trim down, runaway roll servo) and two subtler (failed attitude indicator, pitch sensor drift down) than those in Study 1, and the effect of an auditory warning. Data collection was performed in the Civil Aerospace Medical Institute's Advanced General Aviation Research Simulator, configured as a Piper Malibu. Results suggest that maladaptive responses to some of these failures may, in a significant percentage of cases, lead to significant altitude loss, overstress of the airframe, disorientation of the pilot, or destruction of the aircraft. Percentages of successful recoveries, detection/correction times, and related indices of performance are discussed in the context of malfunction type, flight profile, and auditory alerts.

Key Words: Autopilot, Automation, Simulator Research, General Aviation, Instrument Flight, Flight Simulation, Psychology, Applied Psychology

No. of Pages: 27