Aviation Safety and Security Commons^™

Fostering Trust In Artificial Intelligence In Commercial Aviation: An Exploratory Study, Leila Halawi, Mark Miller, Sam Holley

Publications

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a transformative force, compelling industries to adapt their operations, management systems, and workforce capabilities. The aviation sector finds itself at the forefront of this transformation, confronted with the imperative to navigate the complex dynamics of trust amidst AI's integration. Through a comprehensive survey involving 310 professionals from across the US commercial aviation sector, the research aims to shed light on the trust construct. The exploratory study provides critical insights for strategic AI adoption within the industry. A crosstabulation explored how employee trust in AI for decision-making differed across various demographic groups. In addition, a onesample T-test …

Electronic On Planes: Security Measures And Avionics Disruption, Martin Jasek, Ivana Olivková

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Airlines have implemented various security measures to address the use of electronics on aircraft, focusing on telecommunication services, Bluetooth technology, and personal electronic devices (PEDs). This study evaluates 50 airlines using data from websites and safety videos to assess these technologies. While the integration of new technologies like in-flight Wi-Fi and Bluetooth offers passenger benefits, concerns persist about the potential electromagnetic interference with aircraft avionics. Early research by NASA and the FCC highlighted the risks, finding that devices like mobile phones could disrupt GPS signals during critical flight phases. Despite conflicting studies, ongoing monitoring is essential to balance passenger connectivity …

The Intellectual Structure And The Future Of Counter-Uncrewed Aerial Systems (Uas) Research: A Bibliometric And A Scoping Review, Chuyang Yang, Chenyu Huang, Yanhui Zhao

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

With advancements in remote sensing technology and affordable design, uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), commonly known as drones, have become prevalent in civil and military applications, such as agriculture, public safety, and aerial imaging. However, the rise in unlawful UAS activities, such as non-compliance with legal standards and potential terrorist attacks, has raised significant public concern, necessitating effective detection and mitigation solutions. Despite the growing importance of this issue, comprehensive and detailed examinations of existing counter-UAS solutions are lacking. To address this gap, this study conducts a bibliometric analysis and scoping review of the current literature to identify key topics and …

Functional Monitoring For Run-Time Assurance Of A Real-Time Cyber Physical System, Matthew W. Gelber

Theses and Dissertations

As cyber-physical systems (CPS) become more integrated into everyday life, the security of these systems must also be considered during their development due to their ever-increasing importance. With the growth of physical components in the system, more autonomous control requirements, and increased dependence on proper functionality, verifying system safety and correct operation becomes increasingly difficult. CPS have become more complex through the combination of additional hardware and the resulting interconnected software in many layers, each requiring unique security solutions. One example of such a safety-critical CPS embedded system is the Flight Control System (FCS) of an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). …

Prioritization Of Voluntary Silence Criteria In Military Aviation For The Sustainability Or Safety Superiority, Vildan Durmaz, Cüneyt Ceyran, Ebru Yazgan

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Since aviation is one of the sectors involving high levels of risk in today’s world, the presence of a safe working environment is crucial for both flight operations and aircraft maintenance services. Thus, it is vital for aviation workers to be aware of unsafe situations as well as dangers and potential risks in order to create a safe environment and establish an organizational safety culture. One of the fundamental components of such awareness is information, and voluntary reporting of this information as well as unsafe situations by aviation employees is one of the most important ways for managers to access …

Airspace Saturation And Midair Collision Risk: A Case Study At A Class D Airport, Luigi Raphael I. Dy, John H. Mott

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Near midair collisions are precursor events to actual collisions and may be an indicator of risk. While previous studies have used reports of near midair collisions to relate factors such as airspace saturation to near midair collisions, the reports relied upon were generally subjective in nature. With the adoption of automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), the approximate position of every equipped aircraft can be recorded. A six-month case study was performed at the Purdue University airport to relate the number of 1000-foot proximity events to airspace saturation, and whether the Class D airspace affected this relationship. Through a logistic regression analysis, …

Railroad Condition Monitoring Using Distributed Acoustic Sensing And Deep Learning Techniques, Md Arifur Rahman

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Proper condition monitoring has been a major issue among railroad administrations since it might cause catastrophic dilemmas that lead to fatalities or damage to the infrastructure. Although various aspects of train safety have been conducted by scholars, in-motion monitoring detection of defect occurrence, cause, and severity is still a big concern. Hence extensive studies are still required to enhance the accuracy of inspection methods for railroad condition monitoring (CM). Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) has been recognized as a promising method because of its sensing capabilities over long distances and for massive structures. As DAS produces large datasets, algorithms for precise …

Visual Acquisition And Detection Of Manned Fixed-Wing Aircraft And Rotorcraft: An Analysis Of Pilots' Perception And Performance, Rania Bassou

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, the rapid advancement of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) has led to an increasingly complex National Airspace System (NAS), necessitating a comprehensive understanding of factors that impact pilot visual acquisition and detection of other aircraft (including manned fixed-wing, rotorcraft, and UAS). The objective of this study is to investigate factors that affect pilot performance in visually acquiring and detecting other manned-fixed wing aircraft and manned rotorcraft using a multi-method approach, incorporating qualitative and quantitative data analysis. A diverse sample of pilots with varying flight experience participated in the study. Participants were exposed to a series of flight test …

Traffic Monitoring System, Elizabeth Suda

Honors Projects

The Traffic Monitoring System (TMS) was implemented at the Bowling Green Flight Center as a pre-planning traffic volume tool for flight instructors to utilize when deciding on a safe location for a training event. The TMS allows the instructor to pre-determine a location during the preflight planning stage that provides the best traffic separation, rather than finding out once airborne that an designated flight training area is overcrowded leading to greater collision hazards. The Traffic Management System has provided Bowling Green Flight Center pilots and instructors with greater situational awareness of traffic and increased safety margins in flight training.

Safety In Flight Training - An Analysis Of The Ntsb Data 2014-2018, Michael F. Walach

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

There were 7,500 safety events in the NTSB data sets from 2013-2018. These events were analyzed using Chi-square, Cramer’s V, and the odds ratio. Major findings in the study determined that while pilots crash aircraft for the same reasons whether they are in a training environment or not, student pilots are typically less likely to be killed, or seriously injured. The aircraft that student pilots fly however, do not share the same relative safety in some event types. Students destroy and substantially damage more aircraft than their non-training counterparts in abnormal runway contact events. The top five causes of safety …

Deficient Aeronautical Decision-Making Contributions To Fatal General Aviation Accidents, Douglas D. Boyd, Mark Scharf Phd

Publications

INTRODUCTION: General aviation (GA), mainly comprised of light (≤12,500 lb) aircraft, maintains an inferior safety record compared with air carriers. To improve safety, aeronautical decision-making (ADM) practices have been advocated to GA pilots since 1991. Herein, we determined the extent to which GA pilots disregard such practices. METHODS: Fatal accidents (1991–2019) involving private pilots (PPLs) in single-engine airplanes were identified (N = 1481) from the National Transportation Safety Board AccessR database. Of these, deficient go/no-go and in-flight ADM-related mishaps were scored using the PAVE (pilot, aircraft, environment, external pressure)/IMSAFE (illness, medicine, stress, alcohol, fatigue, eating) and PPP (perceive, process, …

Risk Assessment Matrix Of Operational Safety (Ramos): Aviation Safety With A Matlab® Design Toolkit, Haoruo Fu, Chien-Tsung Lu, Zhenglei Ji

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

Safety is the priority of the aviation industry that requires continuous support and improvement. While the Safety Management Systems (SMS) is mandatory for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) Part 121 air carriers and Part 139 airports in the United States, SMS remains optional to General Aviation (GA) due to various reasons including limited budget and manpower associated with technologies. This paper aims to promote the adoption of MATLAB^® to develop a low-cost Risk Assessment Matrix of Operational Safety (RAMOS) (risk calculation and control) for GA operators. A case is presented to demonstrate the application of …

A Qualitative Ethnographic Case Study Exploring The Hispanic/Latinx Interpretations Of Collegiate Aviation Safety Culture, Jorge L. D. Albelo Ph.D., Leo G. Acosta, Flavio A. C. Mendonca Ph.D., Eugene Kim, Felipe Almodovar

Journal of Aviation Technology and Engineering

Through a combination of ethnographic principles and a qualitative case study structure, this study strives to understand how Hispanic/ Latinx aviation students perceive the current aviation safety culture in their flight training program. Grounded in the reciprocal safety culture model, the researchers attempt to answer how does Hispanic/Latinx culture influence perceptions towards commitment to aviation safety? and what are Hispanic/Latinx students’ perceptions of their ability to influence aviation safety culture? Three major themes emerged from the data: behavioral signs of safety culture at the collegiate level, obstacles to a sound safety culture, and methods to improve the safety culture. Moreover, …

A Literary Survey On The U.S. Airline Maintenance Outsourcing: Technology, Economics, And Politics Perspectives, Linfeng Jin, Chien-Ting Lu

Publications

This study examines the U.S. airline maintenance outsourcing- a common business phenomenon in the post-1978 deregulated airline industry. Over the years, there have been several fatal accidents in the U.S. linked to airline maintenance outsourcing, and it has caught the attention of the government and general public. This paper went over the complex airline maintenance outsourcing factors from technology, economics, and political tripartite perspectives. And suggestions for the airlines, the regulators and the legislators are made in the end

Identification And Validation Of A Predicted Risk-Taking Propensity Model Among General Aviation Pilots, Joel Samu

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Risk-taking, a persistent topic of interest and concern in aviation, has been linked with unsafe behaviors and accidents. However, risk-taking propensity is a complex construct that encompasses numerous factors still being researched. Even within the limited research available about the factors affecting pilots’ risk-taking propensity, studies have yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, this quantitative study explores existing and novel factors that predict the propensity for risk-taking among general aviation (GA) pilots in the United States.

This study, conducted in two stages, involved developing a prediction model using backward stepwise regression to predict pilots’ risk propensity, followed by model fit testing using …

Evidence-Based Managerial Decision-Making With Machine Learning: The Case Of Bayesian Inference In Aviation Incidents, Aaron Glassman, Burak Cankaya, Kazim Topuz, Dursun Delen

Publications

Understanding the factors behind aviation incidents is essential, not only because of the lethality of the accidents but also the incidents’ direct and indirect economic impact. Even minor incidents trigger significant economic damage and create disruptions to aviation operations. It is crucial to investigate these incidents to understand the underlying reasons and hence, reduce the risk associated with physical and financial safety in a precarious industry like aviation. The findings may provide decision-makers with a causally accurate means of investigating the topic while untangling the difficulties concerning the statistical associations and causal effects. This research aims to identify the significant …

Developing Systems Engineering And Machine Learning Frameworks For The Improvement Of Aviation Maintenance, Fatine Elakramine

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation develops systems engineering and machine learning models for aviation maintenance support. With the constant increase in demand for air travel, aviation organizations compete to maintain airworthy aircraft to ensure the safety of passengers. Given the importance of aircraft safety, the aviation sector constantly needs technologies to enhance the maintenance experience, ensure system safety, and limit aircraft downtime. Based on the current literature, the aviation maintenance sector still relies on outdated technologies to maintain aircraft maintenance documentation, including paper-based technical orders. Aviation maintenance documentation contains a mixture of structured and unstructured technical text, mainly inputted by operators, making them …

Unmanned Aerial System Integration Safety And Security Technology Ontology, Rebecca A. Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) is a versatile and essential tool for law enforcement, first responders, utility providers, and the general public. Integrating the UAS into the National Airspace System (NAS) poses a significant challenge to policymakers and manufacturers. A UAS Integration Safety and Security Technology Ontology (ISSTO) has been developed in the Web Ontology Language (OWL) to aid in this integration. ISSTO is a domain ontology covering aviation topics corresponding to flights, aircraft types, manufacturers, temporal/spatial, waivers and authorizations, track data, NAS facilities, air traffic control advisories, weather phenomena, surveillance and security equipment, and events, sensor types, radio frequency ranges, …

Design And Implementation Of High-Efficiency, Lightweight, System-Friendly Solid-State Circuit Breaker, Dehao Qin

All Dissertations

Direct current (DC) distribution system has shown potential over the alternative current (AC) distribution system in some application scenarios, e.g., electrified transportation, renewable energy, data center, etc. Because of the fast response speed, DC solid-state circuit breaker (SSCB) becomes a promising technology for the future power electronics intensive DC energy system with fault-tolerant capability. First, a thorough literature survey is performed to review the DC-SSCB technology. The key components for DC-SSCB, including power semiconductors, topologies, energy absorption units, and fault detection circuits, are studied. It is observed that the prior studies mainly focus on the basic interruption capability of the …

The Impact Of Flight On Cabin Crew Wellness: A Literature Review, Ashleigh Roderick

Senior Honors Theses

Since its conception in 1903, aviation has captivated the attention of people across the globe and has been utilized in many sectors of society. Aviation related occupations pose a unique set of risks to those working in the field, health risks being one of the most prominent. Cancer, cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal ailments, and genetic damage have all been studied as potential consequences of working in the aviation industry, as some studies indicate a higher prevalence of these issues in aviation employees. Apart from physiological issues, mental health issues have also been observed in those working in aviation. Mental health issues …