Flare Cue Symbology for Zero-Zero Weather Landings
Abstract
When flying an airplane, landing is arguably the most difficult task a pilot can do. This applies to pilots of all skill levels particularly as the level of complexity in both the aircraft and environment increase. Current navigational aids, such as an instrument landing system (ILS), do a good job of providing safe guidance for an approach to an airfield. These aids provide data to primary flight reference (PFR) displays on-board aircraft depicting through symbology what the pilot's eyes should be seeing. Piloting an approach under visual meteorological conditions (VMC) is relatively easy compared to the various complex instrument approaches under instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) which may include flying in zero-zero weather. Perhaps the most critical point in the approach is the transition to landing where the rate of closure between the wheels and the runway is%critical to a smooth, accurate landing. Very few PFR's provide this flare cue information. In this study we will evaluate examples of flare cueing symbology for use in landing an aircraft in the most difficult conditions. This research is a part of a larger demonstration effort using sensor technology to land in zero-zero weather at airfields that offer no or unreliable approach guidance. Several problems exist when landing without visual reference to the outside world. One is landing with a force greater than desired at touchdown and another is landing on a point of the runway other than desired. We compare different flare cueing systems to one another and against a baseline for completing this complex a roach task.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADA458551
Entities
People
- David M. Murphy
- Guy A. French
- William R. Ercoline
Organizations
- General Dynamics