Flight Evaluation of Servo-Altimeter Displays for the Air Traffic Control Radar Beacon System/IFF/Mark 12/System (AIMS) Program

摘要

The Counter-Drum-Pointer, Counter-Pointer, DrumPointer, and Three-Pointer altimeter presentations were evaluated by twenty-three Navy, Air Force and Army pilots to select the best display for altimeters to be used in airplanes operating above 18,000 feet as part of the AIMS program. The Counter-Drum-Pointer (CDP) was the first choice of 80% of the pilots. Deficiencies in the CDP altimeter presentation for which correction is mandatory are: lag in the standby mode of operation and insufficient differentiation between the thousand foot counter and the hundred foot drum. Deficiencies in the CDP altimeter presentation for which correction is desirable for improved service use are: drum obscuration when the pointer indicates 250 or 750 feet and possible misreading altitude by a thousand feet when pointer is between the 900 and 1,000 foot positions. The CDP altimeter presentation is recommended for the AIMS program when the mandatory category deficiencies are corrected. The flight profile questionnaire and flight simulator methods are recommended as required phases in the evaluation of flight displays. (Author)