Advanced Technology Aircraft Safety Survey Report - Australian ...

Conclusion
Although this comparison is limited to only 10 attitude probes, figs 11.1-1 1.10 indicate that
pilot attitudes towards automation are remarkably similar, despite differences in culture,
technological advancement, training, and experience.
It would appear that after approximately 10 years, the efforts of the aircraft manufacturers and
airline training departments have not adequately addressed the issue of automation surprise,
the lack of mode awareness, and deficiencies in systems knowledge.
To summarise the results of the 10 attitude probes:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Automation surprise was common across all groups.
An average of 11% of pilots did not always know what mode the autopilot / autothrottle
/ flight director was in.
An average of 9% of pilots agreed that there were some modes that they did not
understand.
The majority of all pilots preferred to hand-fly part of every trip to keep their skills up.
Most pilots agreed that automation had reduced the effect of fatigue in flight.
Pilots were polarised on the issue of the effect of automation on workload reduction.
The majority of pilots did not agree that crew management was a problem on advanced
technology aircraft.
Most agreed that their training had been adequate.
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