Research papers

Task Load Management in Earth Independent Medical Operations

BACKGROUND: Medical care in spaceflight carries a high task load and can easily overwhelm a small crew. Present day operations in low Earth orbit (LEO) offload most medical tasks to ground teams in mission control.

Aeromedical Transformation: From Clinical to Performance-Based Assessments.

Statement of the Problem or Issue: The traditional approach to aeromedical evaluation primarily focused on clinically based assessments may not comprehensively capture the dynamic demands of modern aviation operations.

Reports on Toxicological Findings in Fatal Civil Aviation Accidents

Annual toxicology summary of pilots and other crew from fatal U.S. civil aviation accidents. Documents the prevalence of legal and illicit drugs, sedating antihistamines, antidepressants, cannabinoids, and other CNS-acti…

Short-Haul Fatigue: Pilot Perspectives & Current Research

Introduction: There are few studies investigating the impact of fatigue in short-haul flight operations conducted under United States (U.S.) Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) Part 117 flight and duty limitations and res…

Pilot Fatigue and Sleep Patterns in Long-Range and Ultra-Long-Range Operations

Field study of crew sleep and alertness during ultra-long-range commercial operations. Combines actigraphy, sleep diaries, and PVT-B reaction tests.

Age and the General Aviation Pilot: A Review of the Accident and Medical Certification Data

Analyzes the relationship between pilot age, accident rates, and medical certification outcomes in U.S. general aviation. Identifies age cohorts with elevated risk for specific accident types (loss of control, controlled…

Pilot Workload is Associated with Long Duty Days and Multiple Flight Legs

Pilot workload is a real concern throughout aviation, especially in short-haul operations due to short flights and multiple flight legs.

Aircrew Performance Following Rapid Depressurization at Altitude

Hypobaric chamber study of pilot performance during simulated rapid decompression at cruise altitudes. Measures time of useful consciousness, cognitive task accuracy, and oxygen-mask donning latency across age and altitu…

Flight Surgeons, Aerospace Medicine And NATO Aeromedical Doctrine: Where Is The Alliance For Flight Safety?

Where are flight surgeons heading to in NATO? How does the aeromedical community contribute to flight safety in allied air and space operations? What are the standards expected to deliver best practices in aerospace medi…

Effect of resistance training on muscle use during exercise

This study examined the effect of resistance training on exercise-induced contrast shift in magnetic resonance (MR) images. It was hypothesized that a given load could be lifted after training with less muscle showing co…

Dynamic Visual Acuity and Landing Sickness in Crewmembers Returning from Long-Duration Spaceflight

Long-term exposure to microgravity causes sensorimotor adaptations that result in functional deficits upon returning to a gravitational environment.

Pre-Flight Training of Autonomic Responses for Mitigating the Effects of Spatial Disorientation During Spaceflight

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has identified a potential risk of spatial disorientation, motion sickness, and degraded performance to astronauts during re-entry and landing of the proposed Orio…

Evaluating Fatigue in Operational Settings: The NASA Ames Fatigue Countermeasures Program

In response to a 1980 Congressional request, NASA Ames initiated a program to examine fatigue in flight operations. The Program objectives are to examine fatigue, sleep loss, and circadian disruption in flight operations…

Fatigue‐Related Countermeasures for Long‐Duration Exploration Missions

The NASA Human Research Program's (HRP) Behavioral Health and Performance Element (BHP) supports and conducts research to mitigate deleterious outcomes related to fatigue, sleep loss, circadian desynchronization, and wor…

Fatigue in U.S. Astronauts Onboard the International Space Station: Environmental Factors, Operational Impacts, and Implementation of Countermeasures

Since 2000, US astronauts have been supporting missions up to a six month duration on the International Space Station (ISS). Crewmembers have experienced fatigue for reasons similar to military deployments.

Analysis of Crew Fatigue in AIA Guantanamo Bay Aviation Accident

Flight operations can engender fatigue, which can affect flight crew performance, vigilance, and mood. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) requested the NASA Fatigue Countermeasures Program to analyze crew fa…

Linking the Pilot Structural Model and Pilot Workload

Behavioral models are developed that closely reproduced pulsive control response of two pilots using markedly different control techniques while conducting a tracking task.

Stroboscopic Goggles as a Countermeasure for Dynamic Visual Acuity and Landing Sickness in Crewmembers Returning from Long-Duration Spaceflight

Long-term exposure to microgravity causes sensorimotor adaptations that result in functional deficits upon returning to a gravitational environment.

Psychophysiological Sensing and State Classification for Attention Management in Commercial Aviation

Attention-related human performance limiting states (AHPLS) can cause pilots to lose airplane state awareness (ASA), and their detection is important to improving commercial aviation safety.

Autogenic-Feedback Training Exercise (AFTE) Mitigates the Effects of Spatial Disorientation to Simulated Orion Spacecraft Re-Entry: Individual Differences

NASA has identified a potential risk of spatial disorientation to future astronauts during re-entry of the proposed Orion spacecraft. The purpose of this study was to determine if a 6-hour physiological training procedur…

System and Method for Providing Model-Based Alerting of Spatial Disorientation to a Pilot

A system and method monitor aircraft state parameters, for example, aircraft movement and flight parameters, applies those inputs to a spatial disorientation model, and makes a prediction of when pilot may become spatial…

Risk of Adverse Health and Performance Effects of Celestial Dust Exposure

Crew members can be directly exposed to celestial dust in several ways. After crew members perform extravehicular activities (EVAs), they may introduce into the habitat dust that will have collected on spacesuits and boo…

Crew Factors in Flight Operations: A Survey of Fatigue Factors in Corporate/Executive A Viation Operations - 8

Corporate flight crews face unique challenges including unscheduled flights, quickly changing schedules, extended duty days, long waits, time zone changes, and peripheral tasks.

Crew Factors in Flight Operations: A Survey of Fatigue Factors in Regional Airline Operations - 11

This report is the eleventh in a series on the physiological effects of flight operations on flight crews. A 119-question survey was completed by 1,424 flight crewmembers from 26 regional carriers to identify factors con…

Crew factors in flight operations 9: Effects of planned cockpit rest on crew performance and alertness in long-haul operations

This study examined the effectiveness of a planned cockpit rest period to improve alertness and performance in long-haul flight operations.

Cabin Safety Research: Evacuation in Smoke and Reduced Visibility

CAMI cabin-evacuation laboratory studies on passenger flow rates, exit-row selection, and crew commands under low-visibility (smoke) conditions.

Evaluation of Drowsiness Among Air Traffic Controllers in U.S. En Route and Terminal Operations

Examines drowsiness reports, schedule patterns, and circadian misalignment among FAA air traffic controllers. Recommends shift-rotation revisions for the midnight watch and structured rest breaks during night operations.

Spatial Disorientation Mishaps in U.S. Civil Aviation, 1996-2015

Twenty-year review of fatal civil aviation accidents involving spatial disorientation. Categorizes by illusion type (somatogravic, leans, false horizon, graveyard spiral), pilot certificate level, and flight phase.

A Review of the Pilot Self-Assessment Process for Fitness to Fly

Review of the IMSAFE (Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue, Emotion) self-assessment model and emerging alternatives. Surveys pilot adherence to self-assessment standards across recreational, commercial, and CFI…

Survey of Sleep Quantity and Quality in the U.S. Commercial Pilot Population

Cross-sectional survey of self-reported sleep duration, sleep disorders, and use of sleep aids among 14 CFR Part 121 pilots. Compares to OAM clinical benchmarks and identifies subgroups at elevated risk for excessive day…

Helicopter Emergency Medical Services Accident Analysis 2007-2011

CAMI epidemiologic analysis of HEMS accident causes, contributing factors, and survivability outcomes. Correlates with NTSB safety recommendations on HEMS night flying, weather minima, and crew training.

Survival Time After Postcrash Fire in Transport-Category Airplane Accidents

Reviews postcrash-fire survivability data from worldwide commercial transport accidents. Identifies cabin material flammability, evacuation slide deployment reliability, and crew training as primary survivability determi…

Emergency medical services

When NASA was established in 1958, it was known that space flight would require efforts beyond those of NASA to ensure the health and safety of our astronauts. On 10 Aug.

Workload Management in General Aviation Cockpits

Eye-tracking and physiological-workload measurement during simulated GA scenarios. Compares workload signatures across glass-cockpit and steam-gauge configurations, with implications for flight-instructor training and pr…

Assessing fatigue

Despite impressive advances in aircraft technology over the past several decades and an overall decline in the airline accident rate since the introduction of turbine-powered aircraft, flight crew performance problems co…

Circadian rhythms, sleep, and performance in space

Maintaining optimal alertness and neurobehavioral functioning during space operations is critical to enable the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) vision "to extend humanity's reach to the Moon, Mar…

The evolution of Crew Resource Management training in commercial aviation

In this study, we describe changes in the nature of Crew Resource Management (CRM) training in commercial aviation, including its shift from cockpit to crew resource management.

A spatial disorientation survey of experienced instructor pilots

No abstract available

Cerebral versus systemic hemodynamics during graded orthostatic stress in humans

BACKGROUND: Orthostatic syncope is usually attributed to cerebral hypoperfusion secondary to systemic hemodynamic collapse. Recent research in patients with neurocardiogenic syncope has suggested that cerebral vasoconstr…

Aircrew fatigue and circadian rhythmicity

Recent statistical and experimental studies on the role of circadian rhythms in aircrew fatigue and aviation accidents are reviewed from a human-factors perspective, and typical data are presented in extensive graphs.

Effects of High G Conditions on Pilot Performance

The general development trend in space vehicle design suggests the desirability of maximally using the occupant to both control capsule attitude and to monitor vehicle systems during the boost (and reentry) acceleration …