In-Flight Planning and Intelligent Pilot Aids for Emergencies and Non-Nominal Flight Conditions Using Automatically Generated Flight Plans

The following study examined pilots' performance on in-flight planning tasks in non-nominal and emergency conditions using autoflight systems capable of automatically generating a flight plan. The findings revealed that autoflight systems did not significantly impact replanning, while the scenarios did significantly affect the primary performance measures of distance flown and time of flight. Additionally, pilots selected the most direct route when possible and did not distinguish between emergency and non-nominal flight conditions. Pilots also favored use of the automatically generated flight plans. We conclude that: 1) automatic flight path generation benefits in-flight replanning primarily by reducing workload in emergencies; and 2) such a system will require real time access to environmental information, including traffic, weather and terrain, be considered simultaneously.