Advanced Technology Aircraft Safety Survey Report - Australian ...

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY AIRCRAFT SAFETY SURVEY REPORT
16
Summary and conclusions
Aircraft and ATC systems have undergone significant advances in recent decades. However,
the results of this survey suggest that some of these developments have occurred in an uncoor-
dinated fashion and that issues of system compatibility between airborne and ground-based
systems have not always been addressed.
Many pilots considered that air traffic controllers do not take full advantage of the capabilities
of modern aircraft and sometimes impose unrealistic requirements on pilots. It appears that
the design philosophy and aerodynamic characteristics of advanced technology aircraft have
not always been Considered by the designers of ATC procedures.
Of particular concern are the reports that pilots are sometimes required to disconnect
automated systems to comply with ATC requirements, particularly on approach. Automated
systems have the potential to improve the safety and efficiency of flight and unnecessary
reversions to manual operation are not desirable.
Some individual air traffic controllers appear to be unfamiliar with the descent profiles of
advanced technology aircraft. A program of controller familiarisation flights on the flight
decks of advanced technology aircraft (or in full-flight simulators) could help to provide this
knowledge.
The survey identified the most frequent situations in which pilots had difficulty complying
with ATC instructions. These were late changes of runway, speed changes, STARs and changes
to STARs, changes to instrument approaches, difficulties with holding patterns, unanticipated
navigational requirements, low altitude level-offs and changes to SIDs. As can be seen, most
of these difficulties occurred on approach rather than departure. When considering potential
improvements in ATS procedures, designers would do well to give particular attention to
making approach procedures more compatible with the characteristics and capabilities of
advanced technology aircraft.
When asked to identify a location where ATC procedures were of concern, pilots nominated a
large range of geographical areas, including regions with advanced ATS systems and regions
with less advanced systems. These results will to some extent reflect the pilots’ familiarity with
various regional ATC systems and the frequency with which they fly in these regions.
Nevertheless, the responses to this question seem to indicate that advances in ATC technology
do not necessarily guarantee a higher level of pilot satisfaction with the system.
Contrary to anecdotal evidence, the majority of pilots do not agree that controllers sometimes
ask for information which is difficult to extract from the FMC/FMGS in a reasonable amount
of time. This may reflect the nature of the initial inquiry and the pilot’s skill in retrieving
information from the FMC. Pilots revealed that their main concerns related to any nonessential
requests shortly following takeoff, and requests involving off-track waypoints or
navigation aids. These involved considerably more input into the FMC than when preprogrammed
data was queried.
There are many aspects of flight operations which affect the analysis of question B2.6 (‘I am
concerned about the ATC procedures within the following geographical area’), for example,
the frequency of flights and familiarity with ATC procedures. Notwithstanding these considerations,
the results are not as clear-cut as might be expected. The responses to this question
would seem to confirm that advances in technology do not necessarily guarantee a better or
safer operating environment.