Terrain Awareness Using a Terrain Enhanced Primary Flight Display

Abstract

The present research investigated factors contributing to the effectiveness of using a terrain enhanced primary flight display for detecting and avoiding potential Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) accidents. Situational factors involve the position of the aircraft with respect to the terrain in vertical separation and two forms of horizontal separation (line-of-sight distance and lateral position). Three levels of pilot experience were also investigated (high-time pilots, low-time pilots, and non-pilots). Participants viewed static scenes on a Primary Flight Display containing conformal perspective terrain information and made decisions regarding the necessary course of action. The selected actions were analyzed using accuracy, accident rate, signal detection theory (SDT) parameters, and response latency. Results indicated that the interaction of simple perceptual factors combine to have a complex effect on performance in terms of perceptual sensitivity and decision making strategy. The application of signal detection theory analysis greatly improved the understanding of performance across the various conditions.