The Effects of the Ah-64A Pilot's Night Vision System on the Performance of Seven Simulated Maneuver Tasks

Abstract

The Pilot's Night Vision System (PNVS) allows the pilot of the AH-64A Apache helicopter to fly and navigate effectively at night. The PNVS restricts field of view (FOV) and degrades visual acuity, two factors that should adversely affect pilot performance during night operations, especially for flight maneuvers that rely on peripheral cues. Participants, all AH-64A instructor pilots, flew a mission profile in a high-fidelity simulation of the AH-64A. The profile consisted of seven routine maneuvers that were flown first under daytime (baseline) conditions (using a rear projection display with a 174° FOV) then under night conditions (with a simulated PNVS display with a 40° FOV). Automated performance measures were the main dependent variables. It was expected that pilot performance degradation would be significant on hovering turns, takeoffs, and landings, and negligible on stationary hovering and hover taxiing. Significant performance degradations were found for all maneuver tasks. Applications of the findings to training and pilot workload standards are discussed.