FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
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AVIATION MEDICINE REPORTS

Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-98/16

Title and Subtitle: Aircraft Importance and Its Relevance to Situation Awareness

Report Date: May 1998

Authors: Gronlund, S.D., Ohrt, D.D., Dougherty, M.R.P., Perry, J.L.; and Manning, C.A.

Abstract: We tested en route air traffic controllers (currently serving as instructors at the FAA Academy) to determine what they remember about the aircraft in their sector. We focused on memory for flight data (especially aircraft altitude and ground speed) and the position of the aircraft on the radar screen. Aircraft importance affected memory for flight data but not the highly accurate recall of the radar position of the aircraft. We hypothesize that controllers use their excellent memory for aircraft position to classify aircraft as important (potential traffic) or not, and better remember flight data about important aircraft (in particular, their exact altitude). The results have implications for improving techniques to assess situation awareness and interfaces to support it.

Key Words: Air Traffic Control, Situation Awareness, Memory

No. of Pages: 14