| There are two important but conflicting parameters in airborne conflict alerting. The first is look-ahead time (i.e., time available prior to conflict). The second parameter, certainty, is the probability that a loss of separation is inevitable. The present study was conducted to identify pilot preference concerning the irreconcilable trade-off between the two. Pilots were required to assess traffic situations and decide if a maneuver was required to avoid a conflict. The pilots were assisted by automation that provided alerts with three different look-ahead times (2, 4, and 8 minutes) and two certainty level thresholds (high = 99%, low = 75%). The results indicated that only the look-ahead time variation impacted pilot behavior. No significant differences were observed between the high and low certainty conditions. |
