Human systems integration in remotely piloted aircraft operations.

Area of Science:

• Aerospace Medicine
• Human Factors Engineering
• Human Systems Integration

Background:

• Remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) operations present unique human performance challenges distinct from traditional manned aviation.
• Existing aerospace medicine human factors knowledge has limited applicability to RPA crewmembers.
• Aerospace medicine practitioners face difficulties in optimizing RPA crewmember performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and analyze the human systems integration (HSI) challenges impacting RPA crewmember performance.
• To highlight the specific domains within HSI that are critical for RPA operations.
• To inform aerospace medicine practitioners on addressing the unique human factors in RPA environments.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Human Systems Integration (HSI) model to analyze human performance factors.
• Examined domains including human factors engineering, personnel, training, manpower, environment, safety, and occupational health (ESOH), and habitability.
• Identified specific HSI challenges affecting RPA crewmember performance.

Main Results:

• Key HSI challenges include changes in operator selection and training for large RPAs.
• Deficiencies in ground control station design contribute to human error, particularly with multi-aircraft control.
• Manpower shortages, shiftwork fatigue, and reduced crew effectiveness collectively impact performance.
• Limited research hinders precise prediction of the combined impact of these factors.

Conclusions:

• Addressing HSI is essential for the success of current and future RPA crewmembers.
• Aerospace medicine practitioners need direct experience with the RPA task environment.
• The broader aerospace medicine community must address the scarcity of research on RPA human factors.
• Aeromedical decisions currently rely on extrapolations from other aerospace occupations with acknowledged limitations.