Effect of heat stress on the Development of a Flight Maneuver

Abstract

It has been reported that the decrease in performance of airplane pilots, due to extreme work conditions, could potentially lead to an accident. Additionally, exposure to heat conditions has been linked to increased accident rates. The objective of this experimental study was to examine the influence of temperature (21°C and 35°C) and the maneuver complexity, in the pilots’ performance, measured by the time spent to complete a maneuver, using a Static Flight Driving Device simulator. We used an experimental design with ten () professional pilots who had an average flight experience of 420 hours. The results obtained show that there is an effect of both, temperature and the maneuver difficulty, in the time needed to complete a flight maneuver. Maneuvers that are more complex or expose pilots to heat , increase the time to complete a maneuver. Even though the interaction term had a p-value of 0.103, what was seen in the experiment suggest that the temperature has a bigger effect when the maneuver is considered difficult.