AoC number

96

Primary domain

ANS

Secondary domain

T, AP

Description

As all systems become more complex there will be an increasing level of interaction between ground-based and aircraft-based systems. “The increased use of automation to enable NextGen creates a significant technical risk in system complexity. Ultimate success of NextGen will depend on development of new verification and validation methods to demonstrate safety of complex interdependent systems. Achieving NextGen involves a quantum leap from the complex flight decks of today to dependent, multi-aircraft operations that relay on extensive interactions between advanced automation systems and humans in aircraft and on the ground. These interactions will involve both piloted aircraft and UAS.” – Next Generation Air Transportation System, Human Factors Research Status Report

Potential hazard

  1. Potential incompatibilities that could affect safety
  2. Unclear delegation of separation responsibility to aircraft
  3. Variation in design cycle times
  4. Lack of coordinated development of the safety case arising from uncoordinated implementation schedules between airborne systems and ground-based systems
  5. Lack of synchronization between aircraft and ground databases such as terrain and airspace boundaries and time signals
  6. Failure of procedures and hardware to synchronize flight plans in aircraft avionics and those in ground systems during turnaround at the gate

Corroborating sources and comments

http://www.sita.aero/file/2951/New_generation_cockpit_IT_integration_position_paper.pdf
http://download.intel.com/research/share/UAI03_workshop/Kipersztok/UAI-KipersztokO.doc

Next Generation Air Transportation System, Human Factors Research Status Report, May 1, 2012;
http://www.jpdo.gov/library/2012_Human_Factors_Research_Status_v2.0.pdf

Last update

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