The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Simulator to help train pilots

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Nov 17, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Simulator to help train pilots

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, NOV. 16. The spatial disorientation (SD) simulator, "Airfox DISO," installed at the city's Institute of Aviation Medicine in May this year, is capable of six degrees of freedom and rotation, giving it the feasibility to simulate all motions possible in an aircraft. The simulator's functioning was demonstrated to presspersons here on Tuesday.

Along with the versatile motion platform, the simulator has realistic graphics which appear on a screen in front of the student pilot, who experiences a realistic simulation of flight.

The illusions are experienced either in passive or active mode. With the SD simulator, the institute officials said, "SD training of aircrew is expected to be more realistic, and they will be in a better position to deal with the effects of phenomena in-flight."

The simulator could be used in both fighter and helicopter configurations in three modes: active mode from inside the cockpit, where the student actually "flies" the simulated aircraft and the instructor guides the student in following a particular profile; passive mode, where a pre-programmed profile in the computer is used to run the simulator and the student is a passive rider in the cockpit; and the passive/active mode from the control station, where the instructor can use the simulator from outside using the controls provided at the control desk.

A cause of accidents

SD is one of the leading causes of fatal aviation accidents, especially among fighter pilots. "It continues to be a problem across most of the air forces of the world, including the Indian Air Force. Recent analysis suggests that SD may be responsible for almost 13 per cent of category I accidents in the IAF," the institute officials said.

The problem of SD in helicopter flying has been reported to increase with the introduction of night vision devices that markedly restrict peripheral vision. SD is also a problem in general aviation (GA) flying and has been reported as the third most common cause of fatal GA accidents in the U.S.

SD refers to an individual's inability to appreciate his true position in relation to the surface of the earth. A disoriented person is uncertain, unsure and unaware of his position or the altitude of his aircraft with respect to the ground and other aircraft.

"In-flight, the problem of disorientation is much greater than it is on the ground," officials said.

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