Evaluating the reduced flight deck crew concept using cognitive work analysis and social network analysis: comparing normal and data-link outage scenarios

Daniela Schmid,Bernd Korn,Neville A Stanton

doi:10.1007/s10111-019-00548-5

Daniela Schmid, Bernd Korn + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10111-019-00548-5

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Abstract

The aim of the present paper is to demonstrate how a subset of methods from Cognitive Work Analysis (CWA) in combination with Social Network Analysis (SNA) can be used to analyse the effects of a reduced crew in a legacy system of a commercial airliner’s two-pilot-crew operations. Whereas existing research approaches have used different methodological approaches such as classical workload evaluations, we focus on social organisation and cooperation at early conceptual design stages. A case study of Reduced-Crew Operations (RCO) in commercial aviation highlights how Work Domain Analysis, Control Task Analysis and Social Organization and Cooperation Analysis were applied to allocate functions and identify future automation requirements. Furthermore, the SNA shows the possible interactions in future RCO. The effect of technological failure on the network architecture’s resilience is also explored. A proposal on how to react to a data-link outage and break-up in RCO is made with respect to limitations in technology. In this way, the work can foster identifying automation requirements and related possible failures at early stages in the design process.

Highlights

With an increase in automation in various complex sociotechnical systems, reducing human operators has become a hot topic in many domains
In the present case study, we focus on Work Domain Analysis (WDA), Control Task Analysis (ConTA) and Social Organisation and Cooperation Analysis (SOCA) which were used to investigate some of the likely effects of reducing the crew in commercial aviation
We considered all possible interactions in Multi-Crew Operations (MCO) and Reduced-Crew Operations (RCO) to compare them to the possible interactions during a data-link outage in RCO

Summary

Introduction

With an increase in automation in various complex sociotechnical systems, reducing human operators has become a hot topic in many domains. The flight engineer’s profession most recently disappeared in commercial aviation (Boy 2016) Their duties of monitoring all aircraft systems and fuel management have been assigned to an electronic flight management and the two remaining pilots. A series of empirical studies has investigated different setups of GSs including a ground operator as either super-dispatcher or remotecopilot providing support to multiple or one single-pilot aircraft in different situations (Lachter et al 2017; Vu et al 2018). This type of support seems viable for future commercial Reduced-Crew Operations (RCO). This combination of methods provides first insights in a possible loss of system functions at the beginning of a detailed design process

Methodological approaches to reducing the crew

A case study of reduced‐crew operations in commercial aviation

Conclusions