Summary Report of 1977-1978 Task Force on Crew Workload.

Workload is multidimensional and the reactions of individual pilots to increased task demands vary widely. While it has been found useful for various purposes in the aircraft design and development cycle to measure selected aspects of workload, to obtain an estimate of total pilot work and the potential for task overloading it has been necessary to rely primarily on broad measures supplied by pilots themselves. Thus, the final proof of crew capability continues to be obtained in actual test flight. An analysis of the total accident experience of U.S. certificated air-route carriers reveals that there is no evidence that a flight-deck crew of two in an appropriately designed aircraft is less safe than a crew of three pilots. A review of the procedures followed in the airworthiness certification of recent U.S. air-carrier aircraft indicates that manufacturers have demonstrated pilot workload in a fully modern and competent fashion, under the cognizance of FAA, and that actual crew complement approval has been based on both the results of the workload demonstrations and the experience gained in a significant fligh test program. (Author)