Methodology for Evaluating the Simulator Flight Performance of Pilots

The type of research that investigates operational tasks such as flying an aircraft or flight simulator is extremely useful to the Air Force's operational community because the results apply directly to "real-world" settings. However, the task of collecting, processing, and analyzing flight data involves handling a tremendous amount of information; therefore, it is vital to develop a precise methodology in order to successfully evaluate measures of pilot performance. A defined methodology was developed and implemented in the evaluation of flight data collected from the Link F-117A Weapon System Training Simulator during a fatigue study at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. The steps involved in processing the flight data, including data collection, reduction, and analysis, are described in this paper. This methodology enabled the first ever objective quantification of fatigue effects on Air Force fighter pilots. The procedure revealed that the fatigue from 20 or more hours of sleep loss significantly impacted objectively measured basic piloting skills, including the ability to maintain headings, altitudes, airspeeds, etc. Fatigue affected some maneuvers more than others. This flight scoring methodology can be applied to digitized flight data collected from both simulators and aircraft in order to objectively measure the effects of stressors and interventions on flight performance.