The Sky is Falling… Or is it?

Abstract

Verbatim from Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons. Not paraphrased, not summarized.

There are two sides to the issue of societal acceptance of advanced/urban air mobility when it comes to mental health. One is that of the pilots’ mental health, and a topic for another day. The other is that of society’s mental health, the topic of this paper. More specifically, this research seeks to uncover what causes society the most angst when it comes to these operations. Literature review shows that stress increases with noise levels of aircraft flying overhead, as well as vehicle safety. Furthermore, for passengers, the stress caused by fear of flying may be compounded when a pilot is not onboard, as will be the case with these autonomous vehicles. Thus, is it the noise, the safety, or other concerns? The researchers have attempted a qualitative review by surveying a random section of the population in the United States to uncover what causes people stress with advanced/urban air mobility. The findings show that vehicle safety is the main concern, cited by almost ninety percent of respondents.

Authors

• Nilsson, Sarah Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
• Canada, Mike Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Keywords

• Advanced Air Mobility
• Societal Acceptance
• Safety
• Mental Health
• Community-Based Research