Research Assignment: Automatic Takeoff and Landing

Gabriel P. Riccio

ASCI 638 Human Factors in Unmanned Systems

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide

16 February 2018  

      

Automatic Takeoff and Landing

Introduction

            Many aerial platforms have some level of autopilot and autonomous functions.  Autopilots can significantly reduce pilot workload, especially during critical phases of flight such as during takeoff and landing (United States. Federal Aviation Administration [U.S. FAA], 2009).  Autopilots allow for the automatic control of the air vehicle, including altitude, climbs, descents, turns, headings, course interceptions, as well as navigating to waypoints (U.S. FAA, 2009).  Autopilot systems can be found on both manned and unmanned aircraft systems, the levels of automatic behaviors are dependent on the onboard specific avionics package as per platform design.  Autopilot systems are dependent on onboard sensors that provide information and data to the air vehicle’s autopilot system (Nasr, 2015).  Whether the platform has an onboard pilot or the pilot is remotely flying the unmanned aerial system (UAS) from a Ground Control Station (GCS) it is imperative that the human-in-the-loop understand the systems automation and automatic behaviors; there can be no confusion or misunderstanding on system operations (Nasr, 2015).

MQ-9 Reaper

            The MQ-9 Reaper is a military UAS designed to find, track, and destroy targets (Beno & Adamcik Jr., 2014). The Reaper is designed with a sophisticated autopilot and management flight system that enables the platform to operate with full autonomy (Beno & Adamcik Jr., 2014).  The UAS can takeoff, fly an entire mission, and automatically land without any human direct control intervention (Beno & Adamcik Jr., 2014).  The pilot has the authority and capability to take control of the platform at any time via the GCS for any reason during autonomous operations (Beno & Adamcik Jr., 2014).  An Air Force officer remarked that the ability of the Reaper to auto takeoff and land would make training easier for pilots and reduce the total amount of training time (Drew, 2016).  Research indicates that human factors errors are responsible for a significant percentage of UAS accidents, especially during takeoff and landing operations (Williams, 2004).  Therefore, equipping the Reaper with automatic takeoff and landing technology may very well mitigate the risks associated with these critical operations.  However, the advantage of automatic takeoff and landing is a disadvantage.  If a UAS Reaper pilot continually relies on the autopilot’s functions, they will most likely not be proficient at manual takeoff and landing operations when needed (Estes III, 2015).

Boeing 737

            Many commercial airliners are equipped with state of the art autopilots but they are still limited.  Prior to takeoff, the pilot is responsible to enter the route and other pertinent information for the flight so the autopilot can perform its duties (Nasr, 2015).  However, at this time the autopilot cannot ground taxi or perform an auto takeoff but autoland is a capability on some manned aircraft; such as the Boeing 737 (Nasr, 2015).  The Boeing 737 has autoland technology but there are limitations (FlightDeckFriend.com, n.d.).  The autoland feature is used during times of low visibility and low winds; the Boeing 737 autoland feature is limited to a 25-knot max crosswind (FlightDeckFriend.com, n.d).  Pilots of autoland aircraft require retraining every 6 months (FlightDeckFriend.com, n.d).  Additionally, the pilots must still correctly configure the aircraft for autoland and are responsible for speed control (FlightDeckFriend.com, n.d).

            FAA Advisory Circular 25.1329-1C titled “Approval of Flight Guidance Systems” addresses manned aircraft autopilot systems.  The advisory circular is very specific about the requirements for aircraft and pilot requirements in respect to autopilot systems and recognizes the importance of human factors, along with the aspects of the human-machine interface (U.S. FAA, 2014).  The Boeing 737 and its aircrew must meet all of the requirements of this advisory circular; some examples include autopilot switch functions, autopilot override, design of the controls, indicators, alerts, and knob shape and position (U.S. FAA, 2014).  The circular also specifies the requirements for an aircraft that wants to engage the autopilot below 500 feet after takeoff (U.S. FAA, 2014).

Conclusion

            The MQ-9 Reaper and Boeing 737 are both equipped with autopilot systems.  In the event of an emergency or any problem with the autopilot, the aircrews of either platform can take manual control.  The Boeing 737 does not have an auto takeoff function and perhaps does not require one at this time.  Since the aircraft is manned, the pilots can best maintain situational awareness by performing the takeoff themselves.  There is no significant advantage with an autopilot takeoff.  Commercial airliners manually land the aircraft nearly 100 percent of the time unless conditions dictate otherwise; pilots cite the demanding requirements of ensuring the automation is working as designed during an autoland as opposed to the ease of manual flying as the predominate reason (FlightDeckFriend.com, n.d).  It is somewhat ironic that UAS landings are better achieved with automation.  Taking the pilot out of the cockpit necessitates the need for autopilot capabilities to reduce UAS accidents as a result of human factors errors.

            The Reaper is already fully autonomous, the only improvements that could be made to this UAS system are improvements to the GCS.  A list of GCS improvements, especially if the pilot has to manually takeoff or land includes better sensory cues, improved visuals, simplify screen data during critical phases of flight, improve pilot control station ergonomics, and increase visual field of view (Shively, 2015).  The Boeing 737 is currently equipped with one of the most sophisticated autopilot systems.  One novel improvement to the autoland function that would reduce the human factors associated with the pilots having to monitor the automation and correctly configure the aircraft is to have a robot replace the co-pilot and control the aircraft’s autopilot functions. Sponsored by DARPA; Aurora Flight Science has successfully configured a robotic arm in a Boeing 737 flight simulator that was able to fly and land the aircraft (Szondy, 2017).  The robotic arm is a human factors improvement for the cockpit which would reduce pilot workload and improve decision making during stressful and distracting situations.  The robotic arm may very well be the technology needed to achieve auto takeoff for the Boeing 737 and similar aircraft.               

References

Beno, V., & Adamcik Jr., F. (2014, May). Unmanned combat air vehicle: MQ-9 Reaper. Paper presented at International Conference of Scientific Paper, Brasov, Romania. Retrieved from http://www.afahc.ro/ro/afases/2014/forte/BENO.pdf

Drew, J. (2016, May 4). USAF to automate MQ-9 takeoffs and landings. Retrieved from https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/usaf-to-automate-mq-9-takeoffs-and-landings-424975/

Estes III, A. S. (2015, February 16). Automatic takeoff and landing systems [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://knghthwksuas.weebly.com/uas-blogs/-automatic-takeoff-and-landing-systems

FlightDeckFriend.com. (n.d.). Can a plane land automatically?. Retrieved from https://www.flightdeckfriend.com/can-a-plane-land-automatically

Nasr, R. (2015, March 26). Autopilot: What the system can and can't do. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2015/03/26/autopilot-what-the-system-can-and-cant-do.html

Shively, J. (2015, March). Human performance issues in remotely piloted aircraft systems. ICAO: Remotely piloted or piloted: sharing one aerospace system. Symposium conducted at ICAO Headquarters, Montreal, Canada. Retrieved from https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20160001869.pdf

Szondy, D. (2017, May 17). DARPA robot lands (simulated) Boeing 737 [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://newatlas.com/darpa-robot-boeing-737-landing-simulator/49580/

United States. Federal Aviation Administration. (2014). Approval of flight guidance systems (AC 25.1329-1C). Retrieved from Federal Aviation Administration website: https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/advisory_circulars/index.cfm/go/document.information/documentid/1026174

United States. Federal Aviation Administration. (2009). Advanced avionics handbook: FAA-H-8083-6. Retrieved from website: https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/advanced_avionics_handbook/media/FAA-H-8083-6.pdf

Williams, K. W. (2004). A summary of unmanned aircraft accident/incident data: Human factors implications (DOT/FAA/AM-04/24). Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Office of Aerospace Medicine. Retrieved from www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA460102