Airfield Visual Aids Research at the Royal Aircraft Establishment.

Abstract

Although many aircraft are now fitted with some form of instrument approach aid, most landings are still performed manually by the pilot by visual reference to the ground. Even in the case of fully automatic landings by fixed-wing aircraft, the pilot monitors the progress of the landing by visual reference to ground-mounted lighting and marking. Visual aids, therefore, continue to fulfill a vital role in aviation. Operational procedures, aircraft characteristics and capabilities are constantly evolving, producing new visual cues problems. It is therefore essential that within the aviation industry there should be a continuing R&D effort to ensure that the visual aids provided are adequate to ensure safe aircraft operations. The recent development of the Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) is an example of an equipment designed to meet the needs of a changing operational environment.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 02, 1981
Accession Number
ADA110577

Entities

People

  • A. J. Smith

Organizations

  • Royal Aircraft Establishment

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircraft Equipment
  • Aircraft Industry
  • Aircrafts
  • Audiovisual Aids
  • Fixed Wing Aircraft
  • Helicopters
  • Landing Fields
  • Light Sources
  • Lighting Equipment
  • Military Aircraft
  • Military Operations
  • Passenger Aircraft
  • Short Takeoff Aircraft
  • Standards
  • Transport Aircraft
  • Visual Approach Slope Indicators
  • White Light

Readers

  • Aviation Safety and Air Traffic Management
  • Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).
  • Systems Analysis and Design