Safety

Controller-Pilot Voice Communication and Intent Monitoring for Future Aviation Systems Safety

Rakas, Jasenka
Vallioor, Vishali Kirthi
Krozel, Jimmy
Kostiuk, Peter F.
Mohen, Michael T.
2024

In this study, a set of models and software are developed to support Aviation System Safety Analysis tasks. Three primary models are utilized to conduct the following analyses: (1) Speech Attribute analysis, (2) Speech-to-Text analysis, and (3) Intent Inference analysis. We analyze air traffic controller-pilot speech attributes and transcribed texts of voice messages to gain additional insights into controller-pilot communication dynamics. Such analyses are integrated with situation assessment modules to identify any anomalies in flight trajectories. Key speech attribute patterns are...

Data link Technology for Contingency Management in Super Density Airspace Operations

Rakas, Jasenka
Bauranov, Aleksandar
Cheng, Kevin
Monsalud, Andrew
Hayashi, Miwa
2014

Contingency management in SDO is achieved by combining: 1. existing technologies, concepts and software (ERAM, ADS-B, AAR, Biomimicry), and 2. newly developed models (DFDI, Conflict Resolution and Mixed-mode communications for Flight Formation). The proposed concept is demonstrated in 2D and 3D environments in strategic and tactical situations. Improvements in efficiency, safety and aviation operations are achieved by enhancing usage of DataComm in the NextGen environment.

Deep Speech Pattern Analysis of Controller-Pilot Voice Communications for Enhancing Future Aviation Systems Safety

Rakas, Jasenka
Sohn, Sungmin
Keslerwest, Lee
Krozel, Jimmy
2023

View Video Presentation: https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2023-4410.vidIn this study, air traffic controller-pilot speech attributes and transcribed texts of voice messages are analyzed to gain insights into air traffic controller-pilot miscommunications. A Deep Speech Pattern (DSP) analysis is used to convert the speech audio into a spectrogram which is broken down into six sound features: loudness, articulation, tempo, rhythm, melody, and timbre. An initial analysis of these six basic features did not reveal enough...

Dissecting Lightning Strike Hazard Impact Patterns to National Airspace System Facilities in the Contiguous United States

He, Yiyi
Yue, Xiangyu
Lindbergh, Sarah
Gao, Jianxi
Graves, Chuck
Rakas, Jasenka
2022

Lightning strikes pose a severe threat to the United States (US) National Airspace System (NAS). Although the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implements lightning protection practices and procedures to protect personnel, electronic equipment, and structures within the NAS, many lightning-induced outages still occur. To date we found that most research on lightning-induced facility outages has focused on understanding the physical processes of lightning strike effects on aircraft and airport ramp operations. Very little research has been done on examining the overall patterns and...

Failures of Critical Systems at Airports: Impact on Aircraft Operations and Safety

Rakas, Jasenka
Bauranov, Aleksandar
Messika, Benjamin
2018

Failures of critical systems at airports can significantly impact aircraft operations and cause substantial safety risks. This study develops a generalized method for measuring the impacts of unscheduled communication, navigation and surveillance systems outages on airport operational performance (i.e. throughput) and safety. The proposed method consists of two separate models – the aggregate and the disaggregate model. The aggregate model is a regression model that analyzes flight data, which are averaged per quarter hour and obtained from the Aviation System Performance Metrics database...

Implications of Wind Changes and Cross Wind Hazard Exposures at California Airports for Regional Air Mobility

Rakas, Jasenka
Hu, Yingjie
Lindbergh, Sarah
2024

California has a large number of public airports, including single-runway general aviation airports and small commercial airports. Because of anticipated changes in future temperature and precipitation in California (CA) and their effect on airports, our study raises a related question: will airports in CA experience any significant changes in wind direction and speed? This issue is especially important to address at single-runway airports where the occurrence of crosswinds exceed 10.5kn. Under such crosswind conditions, it is not safe for smaller/lighter aircraft to land and take-off....

Proactive, Reactive, and Interactive Risk Assessment and Management of URET Implementation in Air Route Traffic Control Centers

Uang, Grace
Rakas, Jasenka
Bolic, Tatjana
2008

The current trend within air traffic management (ATM), as a part of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), is to increase the airspace system capacity to operate in diminishing capacity conditions while improving standards of safety. An extensive body of research exists regarding introducing automation into air traffic control in order to create more flexible and cost-efficient operations. The User Request Evaluation Tool (URET) is a strategic support tool designed to assist controllers with timely detection of conflicts; it offers tools for checking the conflict...

Re-inventing Airport Land Use Planning in California: A Strategy for Updating the California Airport Land Use Planning Handbook — Recommendations for Update of California Airport Land Use Handbook

Rakas, Jasenka
Lindbergh, Sarah
University of California, Berkeley. Institute of Transportation Studies
The FAA Consortium in Aviation Operations Research (NEXTOR III)
2024

This report is written in response to the State of California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Division of Aeronautics, relating to the need to update the 2011 version of the California Airport Land Use Planning (ALUP) Handbook. The purpose of this technical report and its supplementary materials is to provide a robust scientific foundation for the final Handbook update publication for airport land use compatibility planning, which will be created soon by Caltrans. In this study, optimized are visualizations of spatial distribution patterns of aviation accidents across 259 airports...

Urban Air Mobility and Manned eVTOLs: Safety Implications

Bauranov, Aleksandar
Rakas, Jasenka
2019

New propulsion systems, artificial intelligence, sensor technology, and operational system autonomy are transforming the short to mid-range aviation industry. Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft offer new possibilities for Urban Air Mobility (UAM). However, these developments will create operational issues and safety concerns, especially in the socalled transition period when these aircraft are expected to be manned by pilots, and assisted by onboard automation systems. In this transition period, different aircraft will have different systems for flying. Additionally,...

Detection and Avoidance of Collisions: The REACT Model

Sauer, Craig
Andersen, George J.
Saidpour, Asad
2004

An important perceptual task during driving is the ability to detect and avoid collisions. Failure to accurately perform this task can have serious consequences for the driver and passengers. The present research developed and tested a model of car following by human drivers, as part of a general model under development of a human driver. Unlike other car following models that are based on 3D parameters (e.g., range or distance) the present model is based on the visual information available to the driver. The model uses visual angle and change in visual angle to regulate speed during car...