ATC/pilot voice communications : a survey of the literature.

Details

• Creators:
  Prinzo, O. Veronika ; Britton, Thomas W.
• Corporate Creators:
  Civil Aeromedical Institute
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Office of Aviation Medicine
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Acoustics Aeronautics--Safety Measures Air Pilots Air Traffic Controllers Aviation Safety Communication Systems Human Error Literature Reviews Miscommunication Oral Communication Taxonomy Telecommunication Systems Transmission Voice Communication

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• Publication/ Report Number:
  DOT/FAA/AM-93/20
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States
• Corporate Publisher:
  Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
• Abstract:
  The first radio-equipped control tower in the United States opened at the Cleveland Municipal Airport in 1930. From that time to the present, voice radio communications have played a primary role in air safety. Verbal communications in air traffic control (ATC) operations have been frequently cited as causal factors in operational errors and pilot deviations in the FAA Operational Error and Deviation System, the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS), and reports derived from governmentsponsored research projects. Collectively, the data provided by these programs indicate that communications constitute a significant problem for pilots and controllers.
  
  Although the communications problem was well known the research literature was fragmented, making it difficult to appreciate the various types of verbal communications problems that existed and their unique influence on the quality of ATC/pilot communications. This is a survey of the voice radio communications literature. The 43 reports in the review represent survey data, field studies, laboratory studies, narrative reports, and reviews. The survey topics pertain to communications taxonomies, acoustical correlates and cognitive/psycho-linguistic perspectives. Communications taxonomies were used to identify the frequency and types of information that constitute routine communications, as well as those communications involved in operational errors, pilot deviations, and other safety-related events. Acoustical correlate methodologies identified some qualities of a speaker's voice, such as loudness, pitch, and speech rate, which might be used potentially to monitor stress, mental workload, and other forms of psychological or physiological factors that affect performance.
  
  Cognitive/psycho-linguistic research offered an information processing perspective for understanding how pilots' and controllers' memory and language comprehension processes affect their ability to communicate effectively with one another. This analysis of the ATC/pilot voice radio communications literature was performed to provide an organized summary for the systematic study of interactive communications between controllers and pilots. Recommendations are given for new research initiatives, communications-based instructional materials, and human factors applications for new communications systems.
  
  
• Format:
  PDF
• Collection(s):
  FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:1e7736dae544584558f57664950dd9b3620c1b1b49241585a462045395a98b56
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/21383/dot_21383_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.80 MB ]