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C2-Related Incidents Reported by UAS PilotsIt has been estimated that aviation accidents are typically preceded by numerous minor incidents arising from the same causal factors that ultimately produced the accident. Accident databases provide in-depth information on a relatively small number of occurrences, however incident databases have the potential to provide insights into the human factors of Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) operations based on a larger volume of less-detailed reports. Currently, there is a lack of incident data dealing with the human factors of unmanned aircraft systems. An exploratory study is being conducted to examine the feasibility of collecting voluntary critical incident reports from RPAS pilots. Twenty-three experienced RPAS pilots volunteered to participate in focus groups in which they described critical incidents from their own experience. Participants were asked to recall (1) incidents that revealed a system flaw, or (2) highlighted a case where the human operator contributed to system resilience or mission success. Participants were asked to only report incidents that could be included in a public document. During each focus group session, a note taker produced a de-identified written record of the incident narratives. At the end of the session, participants reviewed each written incident report, and made edits and corrections as necessary. The incidents were later analyzed to identify contributing factors, with a focus on design issues that either hindered or assisted the pilot during the events. A total of 90 incidents were reported. This presentation focuses on incidents that involved the management of the command and control (C2) link. The identified issues include loss of link, interference from undesired transmissions, voice latency, accidental control transfer, and the use of the lost link timer, or lost link OK features.
Document ID
20160008101
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Presentation
Authors
Hobbs, Alan (San Jose State Univ. Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Cardoza, Colleen (San Jose State Univ. Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Null, Cynthia (NASA Langley Research Center Hampton, VA, United States)
Date Acquired
June 30, 2016
Publication Date
May 18, 2016
Subject Category
Air Transportation And Safety
Report/Patent Number
ARC-E-DAA-TN32475
Meeting Information
Meeting: Weekly webex meeting of RTCA SC-228 Work Group 2
Location: Online
Country: United States
Start Date: May 18, 2016
Sponsors: Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics
Funding Number(s)
WBS: WBS 869021.03.01.01.04
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNX12AB08A
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
Keywords
unmanned aircraft systems
human factors
incidents

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