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Two versions of a prototype Free Flight cockpit situational display (Basic and Enhanced) were examined in a simulation at the NASA Ames Research Center. Both displays presented a display of traffic out to a range of 120 NM, and an alert when the automation detected a substantial danger of losing separation with another aircraft. The task for the crews was to detect and resolve threats to separation posed by intruder aircraft. An Enhanced version of the display was also examined. It incorporated two additional conflict alerting levels and tools to aid in trajectory prediction and path planning. Ten crews from a major airline participated in the study. Performance analyses and pilot debriefings showed that the Enhanced display was preferred, and that minimal separation between the intruder and the ownship was larger with the Enhanced display. In addition, the additional information on the Enhanced display did not lead crews to engage in more maneuvering.

This paper summarizes a body of research being conducted in the Cockpit Display Research Group at NASA Ames Research Center to support the development of a Cockpit Situation Display (CSD) for en route free flight and terminal area operations. The paper first presents an airline and FAA perspective on en route free flight operations. This discussion is followed by perspectives of free flight based on interactions with controllers from an Air Route Traffic Control Center. Next we discuss a concept of strategic en route separation and its benefits for both the airlines and ATC. We follow this with a brief summary of work in progress in the laboratory in support of the CSD design. Finally we conclude the paper by summarizing a completed CVSRF B-747 full mission simulation, where crews utilized an initial CSD designed to support en route free flight.

An integrated cockpit display suite, the T-NASA (Taxiway Navigation and Situation Awareness) system, is under development for NASA's Terminal Area Productivity (TAP) Low-Visibility Landing and Surface Operations (LVLASO) program. This system has three integrated components: Moving Map -- track-up airport surface display with ownship, traffic and graphical route guidance; Scene-Linked Symbology -- route/taxi information virtually projected via a Head-up Display (HUD) onto the forward scene; and, 3-D Audio Ground Collision Avoidance Warning (GCAW) system -- spatially-localized auditory traffic alerts. In this paper, surface operations in low-visibility conditions, the design philosophy of the T-NASA system, and the T-NASA system display components are described.

We report the results of a part-task simulation evaluating the separate and combined effects of an electronic moving map display and newly developed HUD symbology on ground taxi performance, under moderate- and low-visibility conditions. Twenty-four commercial airline pilots carried out a series of 28 gate-to-runway taxi trials at Chicago O'Hare. Half of the trials were conducted under moderate visibility (RVR 1400 ft), and half under low visibility (RVR 700 ft). In the baseline condition, where navigation support was limited to surface features and a Jeppesen paper map, navigation errors were committed on almost half of the trials. These errors were virtually abolished when the electronic moving map or the HUD symbology was available; in addition, compared to the baseline condition, both forms of navigation aid yielded an increase in forward taxi speed.

The need for an airborne system to alert flight crew members to potential collision hazards has been recognized since the beginning of the “jet age.” The search for a technically feasible system started in earnest in 1955. The most recent version, the present traffic Alert Collision Avoidance System (TCAS II) is the only one that has achieved serious consideration for implementation in the National Airspace System. In support of this evaluation process, the current study was performed to compare the effectiveness of different TCAS display formats on flight crew workload. Sixteen Boeing-727 flight crews from eleven different U.S. airlines participated in the study. The crews flew a Phase it certified Link/Boeing 727 simulator in a simulated Air Traffic Control radar environment. Eight flight legs were flown by each crew using one of the four TCAS configurations tested: (1) no TCAS, (2) limited TCAS, (3) TCAS with a target-activated display, and (4) TCAS with a full-time display.

Flight activities during the Cargo Airline Association's Ohio Valley Operations Evaluation (OpEval) were focused on near-term Cockpit Display of Traffic Information (CDTI) applications. Seven CDTI applications were ranked from highest to lowest priority, and the first two, Enhanced Visual Acquisition for “See & Avoid”, and Enhanced Visual Approaches, were evaluated during OpEval. Five other applications were demonstrated. For the Enhanced Visual Acquisition and Enhanced Visual Approach applications, a detailed, comprehensive operational concept document was prepared. The operational concept and the associated CDTI requirements were tested during OpEval. Both pilots and controllers reported that the CDTI augmented the visual acquisition and visual approach tasks and improved pilot awareness of surrounding traffic.

The concept of free flight introduces many challenges for both air and ground aviation operations. Of considerable concern has been the issue of moving from centralized control and responsibility to decentralized control and distributed responsibility for aircraft separation. Data from capacity studies suggest that we will reach our capacity limits with ATC centralized control within the next 2 decades, if not sooner. Based on these predictions, research on distributed air-ground concepts was under taken by NASA Advanced Air Transportation Technologies Program to identify and develop air-ground concepts in support of free-flight operations. This paper will present the results of a full mission air-ground simulation conducted in the NASA Crew Vehicle Systems Research Facility. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effect of advanced displays with “intent” (4-D flight plans) information on flight crew and ATC performance during limited free-flight operations.

Cockpit displays need to be substantially improved to serve the goals of situational awareness, conflict detection, and path replanning, in Free Flight. This paper describes the design of such an advanced cockpit display, along with an initial simulation based usability evaluation. Flight crews were particularly enthusiastic about color coding for relative altitude, dynamically pulsing predictors, and the use of 3-D flight plans for alerting and situational awareness.