ABSTRACT
Early flight was difficult and dangerous, but the addition of control and display instrumentation to the flight deck began to rectify this situation. Although avionics systems and instruments have continued to develop, evidence from aircraft accident and incident data show that mistakes are still made, with between 65 and 80% of accidents being attributed to pilot error. Closer examination of the accident or incident indicates that often the occurrence has been ‘caused’ by a chain of events which encompasses many factors, e.g. maintenance, air traffic control, weather, etc. In summary, the term ‘human error’ is too simple an explanation. This has implications for the design of avionics systems in general, and more specifically for the warning systems, which bring the crew’s attention to problems with the aircraft systems, and their resolution. Given the prevalence of pilot error in accidents, especially as the volume of air traffic continues to increase, it is important that we consider the design of current warning systems, and work towards ensuring that improvements are made in the next generation of avionics systems. This paper will: (i) consider the development of aircraft avionics, with particular reference to the warning system; (ii) review the extent to which current systems address these requirements; (iii) report user requirements in warning system design, and (iv) make some recommendations for the design of future warning systems on the civil flight deck.
