Heart rate and performance during combat missions in a flight simulator.

Area of Science:

• Aviation Psychology
• Human Factors Engineering
• Physiological Monitoring

Background:

• Psychological workload in flight operations is known to elevate heart rate (HR).
• The precise relationship between HR fluctuations and actual flight performance in simulators is not well-established.
• Understanding this link is crucial for optimizing training and assessing pilot cognitive load.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between heart rate changes and flight performance during simulated combat missions.
• To determine if heart rate variability during different flight phases reflects psychological workload.
• To evaluate the utility of HR analysis in assessing pilot performance in F-18 Hornet simulators.

Main Methods:

• Fifteen pilots participated in combat flight missions using an F-18 Hornet Weapons Tactics Trainer simulator.
• Electrocardiogram (ECG) was used to record HR, and incremental heart rates (deltaHR) from rest were calculated for 13 flight phases.
• Flight phases were rated by instructors, and deltaHR was statistically analyzed against simulator performance scores and pilot experience.

Main Results:

• Heart rate significantly increased during interception phases (mean 96.7 bpm from 79.0 bpm resting) and decreased during return to base.
• DeltaHR responses were consistent between experienced and less experienced pilots.
• No significant correlation was found between deltaHR during flight phases and simulator performance scores; overall performance correlated with F-18 experience.

Conclusions:

• Heart rate effectively mirrors the cognitive load experienced during simulated flights, validating its use for assessing psychological workload in military simulator phases.
• Current flight performance evaluation scales in complex simulations may be too rudimentary.
• More refined methods, such as visual analog scales, are recommended for accurate simulator flight performance assessment.