Aviation Commons^™

The Collegiate Aviation Student Guide To Success; A Flight Student’S Perspective, Stephan Jansen Van Vuuren

Honors Theses

This thesis aims to guide incoming students on how to make the most of their time in collegiate aviation and how to increase their chances of success. The primary source of information was my own experience as a flight student at Western Michigan University from 2019 to 2022. Entering aviation as a pilot can be extremely difficult given the high barriers to entry; the most common being the money, know-how, and number of flight hours required to work as a professional airline pilot. It is important to make the right choices given the multitude of decisions professional pilots in training …

Regional Airline Pilot Profession Post Colgan 3407, Brett Maas

Honors Theses

Colgan Air Flight 3407 was a devastating aircraft accident that resulted in the loss of 50 lives (Beresnevicius, 2019). Multiple factors played into the accident, such as pilot credentials, pilot experience, weather, and fatigue. As a result of the accident, the regional airline pilot profession was changed entirely. Changes that spurred because of the accident were both regulatory and compensatory in nature. Regulatory changes include the introduction of the Pilot Records Database (online database that stores pilot training histories), increased flight experience requirements to become a First Officer at an air carrier, and the introduction of proactive rest rules with …

Optimal Scheduling Of Aircraft Test And Evaluation Fleets To Balance Availability For Testing And Training, Sarah E. Hoops

Theses and Dissertations

The 96th Test Wing at Eglin Air Force Base manually schedules a fleet of approximately 26 aircraft to conduct a range of missions over a one-to-two year planning period. This study automates the scheduling process, does so in a manner that optimizes multiple planning goals related to aircraft availability for training, and provides the 96th Test Wing with a software tool for the implementation that can be used by operational analysts within the command. We formulate the scheduling problem as a multiobjective, nonlinear, binary integer math program that seeks to maximize both the lowest percent of time any aircraft is …

Investigating Supply Parts Delivery Delay From Supply Depot To King Khaled Air Base In Royal Saudi Air Force, Rashed S. Alkhathami

Theses and Dissertations

Aircraft supply parts is an important factor in preparing the aircraft to do its mission. Due to delayed delivery of parts or inefficient delivery process, time may be lost waiting for aircraft supply parts, causing mission delay or failure. By tackling the delivery delay causes we can insure improvement on delivery process. In order to gather data for this thesis two different tools were used, aircraft parts data and an interview. Data was gathered from the F15 maintenance and supply squadrons in the Royal Saudi Air Force. Results of this research showed diverting in the main duty of supply depot …

Examining The Effects Of Payload Type And Framing On Weather-Related Decision-Making In A Simulated Urban Air Mobility (Uam) Environment, Maria Chaparro Osman

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the current research study was two-fold. First, the study examined the effect of payload type on the riskiness of weather-related decision-making in a simulated urban air mobility (UAM) environment. Second, the current study examined whether framing information using prospect theory (Kahneman & Tversky, 1979) could influence the riskiness of weather-related decision-making in a simulated UAM environment. In the context of the current study, riskiness referred to the risk associated with the decision outcome, specifically whether participants selected a risk-averse decision outcome (return to the departure site) or risk-seeking decision outcome (continue to the destination site) based on …

Building A Frameworks For Apron Planning, Design, Optimization, Future Proofing And Expansion, Adam K. Wing

<strong> Theses and Dissertations </strong>

Airports are a significant economic driver that impact local and national interests. As such, in an ever connected world, these critical components of infrastructure face a growing number of influences which contribute to systems complexity and frequently impede further development. The point of this dissertation is to discuss and highlight the benefit of systematic thinking as planners approach airport planning challenges and update the aging aviation infrastructure in many regions of the world.

This dissertation looks at a series of three papers that, examine the impact and influences of technology, distinguishes the effects of social and procedural changes, and offers …

Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems In The Maritime Sector, Marta Ibarra García

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Deep Learning Prediction Models For Runway Configuration Selection And Taxi Times Based On Surface Weather, Shlok Misra

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Growth in air traffic demand in the United States has led to an increase in ground delays at major airports in the nation. Ground delays, including taxi time delays, directly impacts the block time and block fuel for flights which affects the airlines operationally and financially. Additionally, runway configuration selection at an airport significantly impacts the airport capacity, throughput, and delays as it is vital in directing the flow of air traffic in and out of an airport. Runway configuration selection is based on interrelated factors, including weather variables such as wind and visibility, airport facilities such as instrument approach …

Machine Learning And Artificial Intelligence Methods For Cybersecurity Data Within The Aviation Ecosystem, Anna Baron Garcia

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Aviation cybersecurity research has proven to be a complex topic due to the intricate nature of the aviation ecosystem. Over the last two decades, research has been centered on isolated modules of the entire aviation systems, and it has lacked the state-of-the-art tools (e.g. ML/AI methods) that other cybersecurity disciplines have leveraged in their fields. Security research in aviation in the last two decades has mainly focused on: (i) reverse engineering avionics and software certification; (ii) communications due to the rising new technologies of Software Defined Radios (SDRs); (iii) networking cybersecurity concerns such as the inter and intra connections of …

Evaluating Performance Competencies In The Royal Saudi Air Force Engineering Directorate And Squadrons, Faisal A. Al Dawood

Theses and Dissertations

The effectiveness of tasks performed by the directorate of aeronautical engineering and squadrons in RSAF directly impacts flight safety, which in turn influences the organization either positively or negatively. Therefore, improving engineers' competencies will improve the overall performance of the organization. The study refined and reconstructed a model, namely a T-shape competency model, to assess the engineers' competencies which revealed some management and competency-related deficiencies and concluded with managerial recommendations.

Root-Cause Analysis Of Rsaf Maintenance-Related Flight Safety Mishaps, Heaf H. Alqahtani

Theses and Dissertations

Poor maintenance is a major factor in many aviation mishaps. This is due to the fact that some maintenance activities are carried out improperly or overlooked as a result of human error. It is important to acknowledge that maintenance mistakes are a visible sign of deeper organizational issues. Therefore, adequate solutions to maintenance issues must consider organizational influences. Despite efforts to reduce the accident rate within the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF), the RSAF suffers from an increasing trend in mishaps attributed to maintenance. Therefore, safety data was analyzed to examine trends. Additionally, the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System …

Detection Of Rotorcraft Landing Sites: An Ai-Based Approach, Abdullah Nasir

Theses and Dissertations

The updated information about the location and type of rotorcraft landing sites is an essential asset for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT). However, acquiring, verifying, and regularly updating information about landing sites is not straightforward. The lack of current and correct information about landing sites is a risk factor in several rotorcraft accidents and incidents. The current FAA database of rotorcraft landing sites contains inaccurate and missing entries due to the manual updating process. There is a need for an accurate and automated validation tool to identify landing sites from satellite imagery. This thesis …

Determining Contributing Factors For Passenger Airline Pilot Perceived Fatigue, Heidi C. Kim

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Fatigue is a recurring concern for pilots and continues to be a common contributing cause of aircraft accidents. The purpose of the dissertation was to determine factors that influence fatigue in commercial airline pilots. The ability to accurately associate fatigue in pilots before a flight begins could have a profound and meaningful impact on aviation safety. Seven factors were identified in the literature review as having possible predictive capabilities of perceived fatigue in pilots working for passenger carriers, including time awake, perceived stress, sleep quality, hours of sleep, age, typically scheduled start time, and hours on duty.

An …

Commercial Short-Haul Flight Or Autonomous Mobility-On-Demand: Modeling Air Passengers’ Modal Choice, Agatha Kessler Fentress

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Commercial short-haul flights (SF) are vital to airports and airlines because they account for one-third of hub traffic and have higher profit margins than the long-haul market. While U.S. commercial air passenger travel has increased steadily over the past decades, SF has been declining and was doing so before the unprecedented decrease in air travel caused by restrictions related to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Once autonomous mobility-on-demand (aMoD) is more viable than the human-driven car, demand for SF could be negatively impacted. Although there is published research on SF and aMoD, studies on factors influencing the choice between SF and …

Evaluating Nas Delay Impacts From Orbital Launch Operations At Cape Canaveral And Optimizing Launch Windows, Tanner Jordin Furr

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was an impact of Part 121 arrival delays into Orlando International Airport (MCO) due to orbital space launch operations at Cape Canaveral. U.S. Government archival data spanning ten months and over 22,000 flights was accessed and categorized into three research questions by day of week, time of day, and whether or not an orbital space launch occurred during the established time frame. Inferential analysis using the one-way ANOVA (RQ1) and two-way ANOVA (RQ2 and RQ3) was conducted and found no significant differences in average Part 121 arrival delays into MCO …

Prediction Of Severity Of Aviation Landing Accidents Using Support Vector Machine Models, Dezsö V. Silagyi

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to apply support vector machine (SVM) models to predict the severity of aircraft damage and the severity of personal injury during an aircraft approach and landing accident and to evaluate and rank the importance of 14 accident factors to the severity. Three new factors were introduced using the theory of inattentional blindness: The presence of visual area surface penetrations for a runway, the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) visual area surface penetration policy timeframe, and the type of runway approach lighting.

The study comprised 1,297 aircraft approach and landing accidents at airports within the United …

Coronavirus Disability Survey: Assessing The Impact Of Covid-19 On Young Adults With Disabilities, Hena Rashid

Student Research Submissions

This paper seeks to inform individuals of the importance of digital inclusivity, diminish the digital divide, and accessibility to technological services of college students who experience a form of disability. The United States has conducted minimal research on the digital disability rhetoric, promoted minimal disability-inclusive measures to protect the rights and well-being of college students, and minimal assistance to mitigate Coronavirus (COVID-19) impacts to this population subgroup. This subject can have a big impact on individuals who suffer from disability stigma, low accessibility issues, and who have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Furthermore, this subject will benefit college students …

A Probabilistic Fog Stability Index For Predicting The Occurrence Of Radiation Fog At U.S. Airports, Kelisha Ali

Theses and Dissertations

Fog is a phenomenon that is widely known to affect the aviation industry adversely, as evidenced by economic losses due to the hindrance of fog on airport operations. This is because fog has been a consistent cause for delays, diversions, and cancellations of scheduled commercial airline flights that have subsequently resulted in a substantial negative economic impact on the transportation industry as well as society. This study’s purpose was to determine suitable predictors of the occurrence of radiation fog at U.S. airports. It assessed an extant Fog Stability Index (FSI) and 1-Day Persistence model for their reliability in predicting radiation …

The Effect Of Level Of Immersion On Learning In A Virtual Maintenance Training Task, Kendall Anne Carmody

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of immersion on four constructs related to learning which included: memory retention, engagement, learning performance in the form of knowledge acquisition, and perceived learning in a virtual maintenance training task. The study posed four research questions and strived to determine how these constructs are impacted by two different levels of immersion during a virtual maintenance training task by means of either (a) a desktop computer and keyboard; Low-immersion Virtual Reality (LiVR) or (b) a virtual reality headset and controllers; High-immersion Virtual Reality (HiVR). To achieve this, a between-subjects experimental design …

Analysis Of Factors To Distinguish Between Passenger And Cargo Air Carrier Accidents, Warren Phillip Pittorie

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the current study was to analyze a set of factors for their ability to distinguish between passenger and cargo air carrier accidents. This study utilized a historical dataset of air carrier accidents that occurred between 2002 and 2019 and identified common factors that were able to be categorized according to the theoretical SHELO model. This model, commonly used for analyzing human factors-related causation of aircraft accidents, was utilized to categorize accident factors in levels of the SHELO model, consisting of Software, Hardware, Environment, and Organizational Influences. Data analysis in the form of several logistic regressions revealed a …

Low-Cost Carriers Versus Legacy Carriers: Passenger Preference During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Aaron Bushelle

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the current study was to identify whether passengers had a preference between traveling on low-cost carriers versus legacy carriers during the ongoing pandemic. Building off research conducted by another researcher, several dimensions were identified and utilized within the question items. For this research, the target population was persons residing within the United States who were at least 18 years old and have traveled since the start of the pandemic in the United States in January 2020. A questionnaire was distributed online, and convenience sampling was undertaken. A T-test was conducted, and results indicated that when it came …

Comparing Training Effects Of Virtual Reality Flight Simulation To Conventional Pc-Based Flight Simulation, Tianxin Zhang

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The purpose of the current project was to investigate the effect of utilizing Virtual Reality (VR) technologies for flight training by comparing the training results when using conventional desktop flight simulation versus VR flight simulation. Additionally, this project examined the user experience of VR flight simulation and how users’ motivation and satisfaction with VR simulations. This research employed a quasi-transfer of training experiment including 48 participants. Analyses indicated that VR group participants performed better in the post-training maneuver performance on an FTD than in the conventional desktop simulation group. Findings also supported that VR flight simulation could provide a better …

Ads-B Aircraft Photography, Gabriel Michael Adamson, Wesley Crouch, Jacob Elmore

Honors Capstone Projects and Theses

No abstract provided.

A Primer For Designing A Small Spacecraft Mission Operations Architecture, Joseph M. A. Feliciano

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by Joseph M. A. Feliciano on April 28, 2022.

The Positive Effects Of Study Abroad On Education, Brooke Semler

Honors Theses

Education, especially at the collegiate level, can be influenced in many ways. Traveling, especially in the form of study abroad allows individuals to experience different cultures firsthand and broaden their perspectives of the world. Study abroad and education have a very strong correlation. When examining all students that attended Western Michigan University from Summer of 2011 to the 2017-2018 school year, students who studied abroad have higher educational success than students who don’t. Most students who completed study abroad show a higher GPA after completing their study abroad course. Furthermore, students who studied abroad have a higher graduation rate than …

The Impacts Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Airport Demand Forecasts And Critical Aircraft For Commercial Service Airports Serving Southwest Michigan, Matthew Wietstock

Honors Theses

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically altered the aviation industry and the nature of how airports predict their future use. This paper conducts a new analysis of the various prediction methods regarding airport demand forecasting using the commercial service airports serving Southwest Michigan. Primarily, the methods researched include time-series analysis using regressions, market-share analysis, and an examination of socio-economic factors. While no one method prevails over the other, the market-share analysis has proven to be the most realistic predictor in three of the four airports analyzed, with time-series analysis predicting the other. A thorough analysis of these forecasting methods can help …

Investigation Of The Low-Temperature Combustion Phenomena Of A Fischer-Tropsch Synthetic Aerospace Fuel In A Constant Volume Combustion Chamber For Greenhouse Gas Reduction, Lily H. Parker

Honors College Theses

Greenhouse gases (GHG) have a harmful effect on our environment as they trap heat in the atmosphere accelerating climate change. As such, the Federal Aviation Administration’s 2025 strategic plan to reduce GHG emissions from air transportation. This call to action for a more environmentally friendly option highlights the importance of synthetic fuels as they are more sustainable compared to traditional fossil fuels. An investigation was conducted into the thermal-physical properties of Synthetic Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) and the Low Temperature Combustion (LTC). LTC is composed of the Low Temperature Heat Release (LTHR) and Negative Temperature Coefficient (NTC) region, …

Airworthiness Decision Factors In The Us Air Force, Derek N. Dennis

Theses and Dissertations

There are multiple airworthiness (AW) certification paths for aircraft platforms and their modifications. Specifically, military commercial derivative aircraft (MCDA) have a unique opportunity to pursue either FAA certification, military certification or a combination of both. Policy tells MCDA programs to pursue FAA certification to the maximum extent possible, however, the policy lacks clarity regarding where that extent ends. This concept of extent encompasses multiple factors and the choice of an AW basis is a complex decision. Under ideal conditions the decision maker, the program manager, has the experience and insight to support their decision, however, this is not always the …

Real Time Evaluation Of Boom And Drogue Occlusion With Aar, Xiaoyang Wu

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) have seen a rise in popularity. Various navigational algorithms have been developed as a solution to estimate a UAV’s pose relative to the refueler aircraft. The result can be used to safely automate aerial refueling (AAR) to improve UAVs’ time-on-station and ensure the success of military operations. This research aims to reach real-time performance using a GPU accelerated approach. It also conducts various experiments to quantify the effects of refueling boom/drogue occlusion and image exposure on the pose estimation pipeline in a lab setting.

Monocular Pose Estimation For Automated Aerial Refueling Via Perspective-N-Point, James C. Lynch

Theses and Dissertations

Any Automated Aerial Refueling (AAR) solution requires the quick and precise estimation of the relative position and rotation of the two aircraft involved. This is currently accomplished using stereo vision techniques augmented by Iterative Closest Point (ICP), but requires post-processing to account for environmental factors such as boom occlusion. This paper proposes a monocular solution, combining a custom-trained single-shot object detection Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and Perspective-n-Point (PnP) estimation to calculate a pose estimate with a single image. This solution is capable of pose estimation at contact point (22m) within 7cm of error and a rate of 10Hz, regardless of …