A Comparison between a 2-D and a 3-D Simulation of Airport Tower Air Traffic Control

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate if there is a difference in performance and experienced mental workload between 2-D and 3-D simulations of airport tower air traffic control. The air traffic control task was to give aircraft take-off and landing clearances. A total of ten subjects, all university students, participated in the study. All subjects were exposed to both 2-D and 3-D simulations. The order between 2-D and 3-D was rotated to exclude order effects. Performance was judged using a rating form used by the Swedish Air Traffic Services Academy. After each simulation the subjects were required to rate their mental workload on NASA-TLX. The results show no statistically significant differences between 2-D and 3-D with respect to performance or experienced workload. When looking at the raw data tendencies can be found for the 3-D to yield better performance and less mental load. This merits further study with a larger number of subjects and scenarios.

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