Pilot Interactions with Alarm Systems in the Cockpit

Aircraft systems are becoming increasingly automated to handle routine tasks, while pilots assume a supervisory role until something fails. Typically, when a subsystem experiences a fault or failure, the pilot receives a warning light or an auditory alarm. The goal of this study is to formulate new training guidelines and principles that will assist instructional developers in designing methods to help pilots deal more effectively with discriminating and prioritizing an array of diverse multi-channel alarms. Six studies were conducted to examine pilot interaction with alerting systems in the cockpit, using both accident/incident reports and empirical research. The findings provide an initial database for training alarm/alert response strategies in current and future systems. It is anticipated that this research will reveal alarm system performance benefits, and associated costs with modified training procedures, display techniques, and automation strategies. Further implications for effective pilot-alerting systems interaction are also outlined.