Simulation and Training for Aircraft Carrier Landings: An Economical Multifactor Approach

Abstract

The Visual Technology Research Simulator (VTRS) at the Naval Training Equipment Center was used to study the effects of six factors on carrier-landing training. An in-simulator fractional factorial transfer design was chosen, in which students were trained under various conditions, and then tested under a standard condition that represented maximum realism. The experimental design permitted a relatively large number of variables to be studied, using a relatively small number of student subjects. The subjects were pilots who had no prior carrier-landing experience: 16 recent graduates of Air Force T-38 training, and 16 highly experienced Navy P-3 pilots. Factors investigated were field-of-view, scene detail, platform motion, descent-rate cuing and training task (straight-in approaches vs. circling approaches). Turbulence was included as a factor and pilot type (Navy P-3 vs. Air Force T-38) was also included as a factor to control this source of subject variability. After training under a certain factor-level combination, students were tested on the day, wide field-of-view, circling task with motion and without descent-rate cuing. Results showed that the simulator and training factors generally produced small or no differences in transfer effectiveness. There were some advantages of the wide field-of-view and high-detail conditions, but these effects were small and/or short-lived, generally disappearing after a few transfer trials. Training with straight-in approaches resulted in transfer performance that was equal to or better than that produced by training with circling approaches. There were no motion or descent-rate cuing effects on the transfer task.