Federal Aviation Administration Research Articles

Understanding Pilots' Perceptions of Mental Health Issues: A Qualitative Phenomenological Investigation Among Airline Pilots in the United States.

Background and objective Although mental health is always a major concern, particularly for airline pilots, knowledge of and attitudes toward mental health have not always been emphasized for safe operations in the aviation industry. Fear of self-reporting, stigmas, and lack of knowledge about mental health conditions are prevalent in this industry. The purpose of our research was to examine pilots' perceptions of mental health issues, the resources available to them, and the reasons they may or may not report these issues. Methods We conducted a qualitative, phenomenological study in which 21 commercial pilots were interviewed to better understand their perceptions of mental health issues, available self-help resources, and rationale for failing to report mental health issues. Results The results of our analysis using NVivo softwareshowed that pilots neither reported the issues nor trusted the processes meant to address mental health issues. Three themes emerged from the research: (1) pilots avoid discussing mental health issues for fear of repercussions, (2) although resources exist, pilots generally distrust the confidentiality of reporting systems, and (3) pilots honestly believe that reporting any mental health issue will be devastating to their careers. Conclusions Airline companies and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) need to change processes and instill a sense of trust in reporting systems among pilots so that they feel safe reporting mental health concerns and receive improved treatment. This can lead to more accurate reporting of conditions andensure safe flight operations.

Hybrid dynamical systems logic and its refinements

Hybrid dynamical systems describe the mixed discrete dynamics and continuous dynamics of cyber-physical systems such as aircraft, cars, trains, and robots. To justify correctness properties of the safety-critical control algorithms for their physical models, differential dynamic logic (▪) provides deductive specification and verification techniques implemented in the theorem prover ▪. The logic ▪ is useful for proving, e.g., that all runs of a hybrid dynamical system α satisfy safety property φ (i.e., ▪), or that there is a run of the hybrid dynamical system α ultimately reaching the desired goal φ (i.e., ▪). Logical combinations of ▪'s operators naturally represent safety, liveness, stability and other properties. Variations of ▪ serve additional purposes. Differential refinement logic (▪) adds an operator α≤β expressing that hybrid system α refines hybrid system β, which is useful, e.g., for relating concrete system implementations α to their abstract verification models β. Just like ▪, ▪ is a logic closed under all operators, which opens up systematic ways of simultaneously relating systems and their properties, of reducing system properties to system relations or, vice versa, reducing system relations to system properties. A second variant of ▪, differential game logic (▪), adds the ability of referring to winning strategies of players in hybrid games, which is useful for establishing correctness properties where the actions of different agents may interfere either because they literally compete with one another or because they may interact accidentally. In the theorem prover ▪, ▪ and its variations have been used for verifying ground robot obstacle avoidance, the Federal Aviation Administration's Next-Generation Airborne Collision Avoidance System ACAS X, and the Federal Railroad Administration's train control model.

Aviation noise in the United States: The current state of FAA research on community response

While today's civilian aircraft fleet is quieter than at any time in the history of jet-powered flight, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) continues to receive complaints about aircraft noise affecting communities across the United States. Additionally, the FAA's Neighborhood Environmental Survey (NES) has shown that community response to aviation noise in the United States has changed and the dose-response relationship between noise and annoyance such as the one represented by the Shultz Curve is no longer representative of communities' lived experiences. This paper will examine the current aviation noise environment in the United States and how the nature of aviation noise and the characteristics of communities that raise significant noise concerns in the United States have changed since the start of widespread use of commercial jet-powered aircraft in the 1960s. This paper will also explore the changing nature of community response to aviation noise based on the FAA's latest research findings on aviation noise and annoyance as detailed in follow-on analyses to the NES.

Jet engines, wind turbines, and AI: community reactions to new sounds

When jet engine-powered commercial aircraft started flying in and out of airports in the mid-20th century, surrounding communities-often in rural areas-were exposed to unprecedented sound levels. A straight line can be drawn from the reactions of those communities to today's Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airport acoustical requirements. Community reactions to utility-scale wind energy facilities in the late 20th and early 21st centuries led to a bevy of local legislation around the United States, some of which has been insightful and helpful. More recently, society's ever-increasing demand for bits and bytes is introducing suburban areas to data centers-campuses of multi-story buildings requiring access to high volumes of cool air, fast Internet connections, and megawatts of electricity. Community reactions to the resulting environmental sound levels are again driving regulation and legislation. In all these cases, community reactions have driven the narrative. Instead of responding to community reactions, the noise control engineering community and their clients could be more proactive-the professionals could lead the narrative. Ideas about how to achieve this level of proactivity are discussed.

Airport perspectives - FAA Noise Policy Review

The FAA has funded a great deal of research related to the impacts of aviation noise on communities, which has led to the FAA undertaking a review of the Civil Aviation Noise Policy. However, before FAA determines any changes in noise policy, additional research is needed. Our paper discusses the work that ACI-NA - in the role of representing local, regional and state governing bodies that own and operate commercial airports in the United States and Canada - has undertaken, and the areas for further research that we identified in the ACI-NA comment letter submitted to the Federal Register in September 2023 in response to the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Review of the Civil Aviation Noise Policy, (Docket ID No. FAA-2023-0855, 86 Fed. Reg. 26641 (May 1, 2023)). Our paper will discuss our comments, which include policy considerations, as well as specific areas that we recommend for future research, such as additional precision in the causes of annoyance from aviation noise, and why we think that additional research is needed.

Detailed CNEL/Ldn roadway noise calculations vs. estimation methods

Roadway traffic noise calculations of the community noise equivalent level (CNEL) and the day-night average sound level (Ldn) metrics are sometimes required for various federal, state, and local government permitting requirements. To complete calculations of these metrics, detailed hourly traffic data is needed and obtaining this data can sometimes be a challenge. This paper explores various estimation strategies that are sometimes employed for situations where this data is not available and compares the estimates against calculations using detailed hourly traffic data to assess their validity. Project examples are provided of various permitting efforts such as those in support of California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) documents, roadway projects at airports for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents, and other local permitting requirements.

On the modeling of urban air mobility vehicle takeoff and landing operations in the FAA Aviation Environmental Design Tool

Urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles are anticipated to operate in close proximity to the public. A possible barrier to the introduction of UAM vehicles as a transit solution is their community noise impact, particularly around vertiports. The Federal Aviation Administration Aviation Environmental Design Tool (AEDT) is the mandated tool to assess aircraft noise and other environmental impacts due to federal actions at civilian airports, vertiports, or in U.S. airspace for commercial flight operations. However, AEDT was designed to model fixed-wing aircraft and conventional helicopter operations, not UAM vehicles. Prior work by the authors showed significant differences in noise contours of UAM departures and approaches when modeling operations as fixed-wing and helicopter types in AEDT. This paper identifies the sources of those differences. Additionally, a NASA time-marching simulation tool is used to generate noise exposure data for equivalent operations to help identify differences associated with the integrated noise model implemented in AEDT and offer possible changes to assess UAM community noise impact more consistently with simulation-based modeling.

Cosmic Ionizing Radiation: A DNA Damaging Agent That May Underly Excess Cancer in Flight Crews.

In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration has officially classified flight crews (FC) consisting of commercial pilots, cabin crew, or flight attendants as "radiation workers" since 1994 due to the potential for cosmic ionizing radiation (CIR) exposure at cruising altitudes originating from solar activity and galactic sources. Several epidemiological studies have documented elevated incidence and mortality for several cancers in FC, but it has not yet been possible to establish whether this is attributable to CIR. CIR and its constituents are known to cause a myriad of DNA lesions, which can lead to carcinogenesis unless DNA repair mechanisms remove them. But critical knowledge gaps exist with regard to the dosimetry of CIR, the role of other genotoxic exposures among FC, and whether possible biological mechanisms underlying higher cancer rates observed in FC exist. This review summarizes our understanding of the role of DNA damage and repair responses relevant to exposure to CIR in FC. We aimed to stimulate new research directions and provide information that will be useful for guiding regulatory, public health, and medical decision-making to protect and mitigate the risks for those who travel by air.

Worldwide Regulation of the Medical Emergency Kit and First Aid Kit.

INTRODUCTION: On-board medical emergencies are increasing. Different geographies have different legislation and requirements for medical emergency kits and first aid kits. A comprehensive review to compare the contents of both kits was conducted, including the International Air Transport Association, European Union Aviation Safety Agency, and Federal Aviation Administration, as well as some from other geographical areas of the globe to cover continents and regions with the highest air traffic, such as Brazil, Kenya, Australia, and Taiwan.METHODS: On June 10, 2023, a search was conducted using standardized medical terms (medical subject headings) within the PubMed® database. The relevant terms identified were "Aircraft" and "Medical Emergencies"; articles published within the last 10 yr were filtered. Subsequently, even articles published before 2013 were consulted if cited by the initial ones. The main regulatory entities' documentation was found using the Google search engine and consulted.CONCLUSIONS: It is impossible to be prepared for every emergency on board. Still, as doctors, we have a moral and ethical obligation to try to improve the outcomes of those emergencies. Getting a standardized report of every on-board emergency is crucial. That would make optimizing the items to include in the emergency and first aid kits easier. There are many similarities among the compared entities, but essential differences have been found. There is room for improvement, especially for pediatric travelers.Oliveira ATB. Worldwide regulation of the medical emergency kit and first aid kit. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2024; 95(6):321-326.

Performance-based acceptance and commitment training in a collegiate flight program

Students in flight training programs experience high levels of stress and anxiety that may impede their performance on practical exams. The restrictive nature of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations and perceived negative consequences of seeking mental health treatment further exacerbates these challenges. This study examined the efficacy of performance-based acceptance and commitment training (ACT) in enhancing psychological flexibility, resilience, and mental well-being as well as improving FAA practical examination outcomes among collegiate flight training students. A randomized controlled trial was used to compare outcomes between students receiving a six-week ACT intervention (n = 23) and a control group (n = 27). The planned sample size of 100 was not achieved, thus, the analyses were underpowered and should be cautiously interpreted. Results indicate significant improvements among intervention participants in anxiety sensitivity (g = 0.43) and psychological flexibility (g = 0.58) compared to those in the control group. However, no significant differences in examination pass rates or time to completion were found between groups. To examine idiographic differences, individual change scores were plotted, demonstrating the heterogeneity of effects between participants. Potential explanations for the intervention's lack of effect on practical exam performance are discussed and suggestions are given to improve future performance-based interventions in this unique context.

Transportation bridge infrastructure asset condition monitoring using uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs)

The optimal performance of a road transportation network depends on the serviceability and reliability of bridges connecting the pavements. Bridge performance depends on several geotechnical assets among which abutments play a key role as they support the bridge span, and transfer the vertical and horizontal loads from the superstructure to the foundation. Soil abutments are designed to be stable against overturning and sliding and prevent differential settlement and excessive lateral movements. In the United States, 42 % of bridges are observed to be over 50 years old. Department of Transportation (DOT) agencies periodically monitor and assess the bridge conditions typically every two years. Due to the costs and the time involved in conducting inspections using traditional data collection tools, DOTs are exploring innovative technologies to conduct inspections and realize benefits in terms of access, cost, and safety. They have widely adopted the use of uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) for structural health monitoring of bridges. A few studies also conducted 360⁰ bridge inspections using camera sensors mounted on UAVs in the recent past. In this current study, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidelines for commercial use of drones were discussed and followed in field studies. Further, UAVs were demonstrated for conducting 360° bridge inspections and identifying the erosion near abutments using three-dimensional models. This paper presents the application of innovative technologies for geotechnical assessments of two bridges in the Alaska region, with a focus on assessing the need for rehabilitation measures. These new technologies have become essential for reliable condition monitoring post-disaster events as well. This approach is expected to benefit the agencies in managing the transportation geotechnical assets in a timely and cost-effective manner.

The on-time performance effects of a policy change in airport slot restrictions: A synthetic control analysis

This study examines the on-time performance (OTP) effects of the 2016 Federal Aviation Administration’s decision to remove takeoff and landing limits at Newark Liberty Airport. Using the synthetic control method, we compare Newark Liberty’s OTP to that of a weighted collection of comparable airports in the United States. Exploiting the regulatory change as a credibly exogenous shock to arrival OTP, we find that arrival delay minutes increased by up to 23 min from an average of 8 min, while the share of late-arriving flights increased by up to 14 percentage points. These results are robust to other measures of arrival OTP.

Laboratory and Field Performance Evaluation of Cracking of Airfield Warm Mix Asphalt with Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement at the National Airport Pavement and Materials Research Center

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration is exploring initiatives to decrease transportation greenhouse gas emissions by developing carbon reduction strategies, including using low-embodied carbon materials, such as reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP), in airport pavement construction. However, verifying RAP’s viability for airfield pavements with laboratory and field performance measures is essential. This study compared the cracking susceptibility of a P-401 hot mix asphalt and warm mix asphalt (WMA)+RAP airfield mixes using laboratory performance tests and conducted a preliminary evaluation of pavement responses from accelerated pavement testing (APT) fatigue tests. The observations and outcomes presented in this paper found that adding 20% of recycled materials with WMA additives had a decreasing impact in mix performance but did not overly affect the asphalt mix properties, as cracking properties from the different test procedures were found with comparable outcomes. Additional observations from strain gauges and temperature probes in the National Airport Pavement and Materials Research Center test cycle 2 APT fatigue test sections showed that the maximum tensile strains in the WMA surface lane 5 south section were consistently higher than those in the WMA+RAP lane 6 south section, which may be because of the higher load level that it was exposed. Additionally, the hardened or aged RAP binder in the entire lane 6 south section may have increased its stiffness, resulting in lower strain levels than in the lane 5 south section. Notably, both sections showed an increase in tensile strains with an increase in asphalt concrete temperature, which confirmed the temperature dependency behavior of asphalt concrete.

Oxidative Stress Reaction to Hypobaric-Hyperoxic Civilian Flight Conditions.

In military flight operations, during flights, fighter pilots constantly work under hyperoxic breathing conditions with supplemental oxygen in varying hypobaric environments. These conditions are suspected to cause oxidative stress to neuronal organ tissues. For civilian flight operations, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also recommends supplemental oxygen for flying under hypobaric conditions equivalent to higher than 3048 m altitude, and has made it mandatory for conditions equivalent to more than 3657 m altitude. We hypothesized that hypobaric-hyperoxic civilian commercial and private flight conditions with supplemental oxygen in a flight simulation in a hypobaric chamber at 2500 m and 4500 m equivalent altitude would cause significant oxidative stress in healthy individuals. Twelve healthy, COVID-19-vaccinated (third portion of vaccination 15 months before study onset) subjects (six male, six female, mean age 35.7 years) from a larger cohort were selected to perform a 3 h flight simulation in a hypobaric chamber with increasing supplemental oxygen levels (35%, 50%, 60%, and 100% fraction of inspired oxygen, FiO2, via venturi valve-equipped face mask), switching back and forth between simulated altitudes of 2500 m and 4500 m. Arterial blood pressure and oxygen saturation were constantly measured via radial catheter and blood samples for blood gases taken from the catheter at each altitude and oxygen level. Additional blood samples from the arterial catheter at baseline and 60% oxygen at both altitudes were centrifuged inside the chamber and the serum was frozen instantly at -21 °C for later analysis of the oxidative stress markers malondialdehyde low-density lipoprotein (M-LDL) and glutathione-peroxidase 1 (GPX1) via the ELISA test. Eleven subjects finished the study without adverse events. Whereas the partial pressure of oxygen (PO2) levels increased in the mean with increasing oxygen levels from baseline 96.2 mm mercury (mmHg) to 160.9 mmHg at 2500 m altitude and 60% FiO2 and 113.2 mmHg at 4500 m altitude and 60% FiO2, there was no significant increase in both oxidative markers from baseline to 60% FiO2 at these simulated altitudes. Some individuals had a slight increase, whereas some showed no increase at all or even a slight decrease. A moderate correlation (Pearson correlation coefficient 0.55) existed between subject age and glutathione peroxidase levels at 60% FiO2 at 4500 m altitude. Supplemental oxygen of 60% FiO2 in a flight simulation, compared to flying in cabin pressure levels equivalent to 2500 m-4500 m altitude, does not lead to a significant increase or decrease in the oxidative stress markers M-LDL and GPX1 in the serum of arterial blood.

Performance Comparison of Conventional and Biopolymer-modified Asphalt Mixtures for Airport Pavement

Raising the temperature of airport pavement softens its surface, leading to rutting or thermal cracking. As aircraft manufacturers lean toward heavier planes with higher tire pressures, challenges arise. To tackle these problems, incorporating polymers like high-density polyethylene into asphalt binders has emerged as a solution. This study investigates biopolymer-modified asphalt, blending conventional asphalt with highdensity polyethylene and pine resin. This study aims to compare the performance of asphalt mixtures using both conventional and biopolymer-modified asphalt binders. Various tests‒physical, Fourier transform infrared, energy dispersive X-ray, dynamic shear rheometer, volumetric properties, Marshall stability, retained stability, indirect tensile strength and Cantabro loss-were conducted. The results highlighted that integrating pine resin and high-density polyethylene increased the performance grade (PG) of the conventional asphalt from PG 64 to PG 82. Asphalt mixtures using biopolymer-modified binders exhibited superior stability, stiffness and resistance to moisture damage compared to those with conventional asphalt. These properties aligned with the specifications outlined in Item P-401 of the Federal Aviation Administration Advisory Circular 150/5370-10H. Keywords: Pine resin, High-density polyethylene, Biopolymer-modified asphalt, Performance grade 64, Performance grade 82

Employee Grievance Redressal and Corporate Ethics: Lessons from the Boeing 737-MAX Crashes

Two Boeing 737-MAX passenger planes crashed in October 2018 and March 2019, suspending all 737-MAX aircraft. The crashes put Boeing’s corporate practices and culture under the spotlight. The main objective of this paper is to use the case of Boeing to highlight the importance of efficient employee grievance redressal mechanisms and an independent external regulator. The methodology adopted is a qualitative analysis of statements of various whistleblowers and Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) stakeholders. It suggests that employee feedback flowing up the chain of command should be more flexible and dealt with more seriousness. It recommends that companies adopt a cooling-off period or a lifetime restriction for employees who have gone through the revolving door between regulators and the industry. The Boeing 737-MAX case, which emphasizes the ethical obligations of the job, can offer value to engineers, engineering educators, managers, ombudsmen, and human resource professionals.

Assessing the Effectiveness of ADS-B Mitigations

The rise in aerial traffic necessitates aircraft localisation methods that go beyond radar technology's built-in capabilities. The Automated Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) system is a novel aircraft localisation method that promises to provide the necessary precision to handle the current air traffic surge. The Federal Aviation Administration has, therefore, enforced ADS-B's deployment. However, the architecture of the ADS-B system holds several vulnerabilities. Most of these vulnerabilities are because ADS-B is designed to rely on wireless networks. This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the ADS-B threat landscape and potential mitigations to better understand their distinct characteristics and impact on the ADS-B system. Addressing these security concerns is imperative to ensure ADS-B systems' robustness and trustworthiness and safeguard the aviation industry from potential cyber threats. The paper concludes with a critical review of how well the proposed mitigations address the identified security threats.

ANALYSIS OF PASSENGER TERMINAL AREA AT PATTIMURA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AMBON

Pattimura International Airport in Ambon is located at Jl. Dr. Leimena, Laha, Tlk. Ambon District, Ambon City, Maluku 97236. In this study, the researchers used passenger movement data from Pattimura International Airport spanning for the years 2018 to 2022. Prior to 2018, the airport was undergoing a revitalization process. Given both these revitalization efforts and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, it has become imperative to conduct an analysis of the terminal's ability to manage the evolving patterns of passenger arrivals and departures. This requires an assessment of the landside aspect to determine the terminal's maximum capacity and to predict when it will reach that capacity. To measure the degree of saturation, the researchers used calculations based on the Standard Busiest Rate method, using the 40th peak hour in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) standards. Keywords : Pattimura International Airport Ambon, ; 40th Peak ; FAA method;Peak Hour.

Developing Representative Test Specimen Conditions for Rutting Mechanical Test Methods of Airfield Pavements

Developing Representative Test Specimen Conditions for Rutting Mechanical Test Methods of Airfield Pavements

A large-scale validation study of aircraft noise modeling for airport arrivals.

In the U.S., the Federal Aviation Administration's Aviation Environmental Design Tool (AEDT) is approved to predict the impacts of aircraft noise and emissions. AEDT's critical role in regulatory compliance and evaluating the environmental impacts of aviation requires asking how accurate are its noise predictions. Previous studies suggest that AEDT's predictions lack desired accuracy. This paper reports on a large-scale study, using 200 000 flight trajectories paired with measured sound levels for arrivals to Runways 28L/28R at San Francisco International Airport, over 12 months. For each flight, two AEDT studies were run, one using the approved mode for regulatory filing and the other using an advanced non-regulatory mode with exact aircraft trajectories. AEDT's per aircraft noise predictions were compared with curated measured sound levels at two locations. On average, AEDT underestimated LAmax by -3.09 dB and SEL by -2.04 dB, combining the results from both AEDT noise-modeling modes. Discrepancies appear to result from limitations in the physical modeling of flight trajectories and noise generation, combined with input data uncertainties (aircraft weight, airspeed, thrust, and lift configuration) and atmospheric conditions.