Effects of NBC (Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical) Protective Equipment and Degraded Operational Mode on Tank Gunnery Performance

摘要

Tank gunner's performance in the M1 Unit Conduct of Fire Trainer (UCOFT) was tested while wearing Mission Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP) gear under normal and emergency operational mode conditions. A pretest, in both experiments, determined initial performance for possible use as a covariate on experimental test performance. In Experiment I, the subjects performed six different test exercises. Results of Experiment I indicated that MOPP gear and emergency operational mode degraded fire time, percent hits, and aiming error. MOPP gear and normal operational mode degraded aiming error only. The degradation in performance was dependent on the type of exercise. In Experiment II, the subjects performed four different test exercises. Results of Experiment II revealed degradation on all performance measures during emergency operational mode. No performance decrements were found for MOPP gear and no interaction between MOPP gear and operational mode occurred. The degradation in fire time and aiming error caused by emergency mode was dependent on the type of exercise. Multiple correlations between fire time and experience variables were significant, particularly overall time as a gunner.