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    Language switching in aviation : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Aviation at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2018) Daskova, Martina
    Clear and precise communication between pilots and air traffic controllers is a precondition for safe operations. Communication has long been identified as a major element of the cockpit–controller interface, explaining one third of general aviation incidents (Etem & Patten, 1998). Yet, despite multilingualism with English as the lingua franca being a characteristic of aviation communication, little research appears to have investigated the efficiency of operation of bilinguals alternating between their dominant, usually native, language and English in a bilingual air traffic environment. The studies undertaken for this research sought to rectify this situation by examining the cognitive aspects of situation awareness during language switching in aviation. Quantitatively and qualitatively analysed responses to an online-distributed survey aimed at investigating the current bilingual situation in aviation revealed that while situation awareness for the majority (76%) of native-English speakers was adversely affected by bilingualism, almost 30% of bilinguals also reported their situation awareness being affected. Subsequent experimental analyses using a language switching paradigm investigated how participants recognize a target call sign, identify an error and predict in bilingual compared with monolingual English conditions. The effect of the language condition participants’ native Chinese only, English only, or a mix of both, varied across the three tasks. Call sign recognition performance was found to be faster in the English condition than in the bilingual condition, but accuracy did not differ, a finding that was attributed to the effect of call sign similarity. However, when the task was more complicated, the difference between the conditions diminished. No effect on performance was found for simultaneously listening to two speech sources, which is potentially analogous to cockpit communication and radio calls. The error analyses served to test for response bias by calculating sensitivity, d', and decision criterion C in accordance with Stanislaw and Todorov’s (1999) Signal Detection Theory calculations. Several cognitive implications for practice were proposed, for example, in Crew Resource Management (CRM) training and personal airmanship development, exploration of own behavioural biases might be used to adjust the placement of the criterion. The cognitive implications largely focused on affecting attitudes to increase awareness. Attention was focused on performance of bilinguals to identify which language condition facilitated faster and more accurate responses. The findings were unable to support any of the conditions, leaving the question: Would a universal language for communication on radio frequencies be worth considering, to allow everyone to understand what is said? Disentangling the effects of language switching on the performance of bilingual pilots and air traffic controllers remains a task for future studies.
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    The relationship between air traffic control ratings and essential job ability requirements : thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Aviation degree at School of Aviation, Massey University, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2007) Lo, Shung Man
    The main objective of Air Traffic Control (ATC) is to prevent collisions between aircraft flying in the air or moving on the ground. Pilots must obtain ATC clearance from ATC officers (ATCO) in order to navigate their aircraft safely. There are two categories of rated ATC controllers (i.e., the radar controllers and aerodrome controllers) operating in different environments and using different equipment for ATC. They are required to apply different sets of separation criteria and rules for aircraft separation. Previous research has identified a number of abilities needed for successful on-the-job performance in air traffic controllers. These included memorization and retention of new information, spatial orientation/visualization, the ability to work well in stressful environments, the ability to shift between two or more sources of information, and the ability to combine and organize information. In recent years, one research studied the job ability requirements between Area, Approach and Tower control positions. However, there was no study investigating the relationship between Radar and Aerodrome (i.e., non-radar) ratings and their respective key performance attributes specific to a busy hub airport. This research tests whether there was a difference in key performance attributes of radar and aerodrome controllers working at the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). Nine ATC attributes were perceived by Hong Kong controllers as being essential, with situation awareness ranked as the most important ability. A multivariate test using the dependent variables provided no evidence that these nine essential abilities differed between radar and aerodrome controllers. However, this study indicated that there might be differences in sensory abilities between radar and aerodrome controllers in respect of visual colour discrimination and night vision requirements. Operating conditions that could have led to such differences on ability requirements are also discussed. The study revealed the need to improve ATC operating environment, traffic display tools and the desirability of reviewing recruitment criteria and controller training plans in Hong Kong. Further studies may be able to quantify how the implementation of more appropriate selection policies can reduce the cost of training and more appropriately match the expertise of ATC controllers to the tasks they are required to be engaged in.
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    A pilot study examining the likelihood and the implications of hypohydration in pilot and air traffic controller : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Aviation at School of Aviation, Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2014) Chagnaadorj, Odgerel
    Adequate fluid consumption is essential for humans to function optimally. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that some aspects of the working environment of air traffic controllers and pilots may encourage hypohydration. In both professions a high level of cognitive performance is required; however, at 2% hypohydration fundamental cognitive abilities such as arithmetic efficiency, working memory, short-term memory and visuomotor tracking involving attention and motor speed are likely to be impaired. The aim of this thesis was to examine thirst and fluid intake, as a surrogate for hypohydration, in two key areas of the aviation industry (controllers and pilots) where fluid intake may at times be restricted. Also examined are why fluid intake is sometimes restricted and whether thirst is related to affect, psychological stress and fatigue. A 67-item questionnaire battery was completed by air traffic controllers in Mongolia and the pilot instructors and student pilots from a tertiary training institute in NZ. The battery included 2 measures of thirst, the Samn-Perelli Fatigue scale, the Perceived Stress Scale and a series of demographic questions. In total there were 101 participants (50 air traffic controllers and 51 pilots), representing an overall return rate of 80%. Thirst related sensations were significantly higher in controllers than in pilots. 14% of pilots restricted their fluid intake before flying to avoid needing to use the toilet and 48% of the reported starting a flight feeling thirsty; 38% of pilots reported having to rush to a toilet to urinate after a flight. Similar, although less pronounced effects were reported by air traffic controllers. Increases in subjective feelings of thirst were correlated with increases in the fatigue scale. Participants who reported higher subjective feelings of thirst and fatigue, also reported higher levels of stress. In conclusion, the findings in this thesis provide some insights regarding hypohydration in aviation professionals. Most importantly, because of the high numbers of people working in these professions, and the potentially disastrous costs of making mistakes through a lack of concentration, that there were participants who reported restricting their fluid intake, feeling thirst, under stress and fatigued is cause for some concern. Both regulators and future studies might investigate ways in which workers in these occupations can maintain optimal fluid intake, or, at the very least (in the case of GA pilots), be made aware of the possible effects of restricting fluid intake.
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    Examining the relationship between shift pattern, risk perception, fatigue, subjective well-being and stress among Mongolian air traffic controllers : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Aviation at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Togtokhbayar, Lkhagvasuren
    The relationship between shift pattern, fatigue, unrealistic optimism, stress and subjective well-being, may affect the safety of air traffic controllers and their likelihood of continuing in the occupation. The aim of this thesis was therefore to investigate the effect of shift pattern (fixed or rotating) on fatigue, unrealistic optimism, stress and subjective well-being among Mongolian air traffic controllers. A battery of four separate questionnaires (and nine demographic items) was completed by 124 Mongolian air traffic controllers (response rate 71%), of whom there were 31 females and 93 males. Length of employment ranged from two months to 28 years. The main findings were that air traffic controllers who work rotating shifts reported higher subjective fatigue, lower subjective well-being and higher stress compared to their colleagues working in fixed shifts. In addition, there was strong evidence of unrealistic optimism towards both general life and air traffic control specific events. Subsequent investigation revealed that unrealistic optimism towards an air traffic control specific events, was approximately two times less than that towards general life events. There was no evidence that shift pattern, fatigue, unrealistic optimism, stress and subjective well-being were related to the length of employment of participants or the likelihood of continuing in their chosen profession. As unrealistic optimism may affect judgment and decision-making (and it can lead to unnecessary risk-taking in aviation), this lower level of unrealistic optimism towards air traffic specific negative events is considered to be a positive finding. However, it was noted that the overall mean of the perceived stress score of Mongolian air traffic controllers was higher than that of New Zealand air traffic controllers, although lower than New Zealand college students and a smoking-cessation sample. Mongolian air traffic controllers are prey to both unrealistic optimism and the effect of shift pattern on their fatigue, stress and well-being. This thesis highlights the need to be aware that this might lead to compromised decision-making and subsequently, unnecessary risk taking.