Flight Simulation Assessment of Autorotation Algorithms and Cues

Autorotation is a challenging flight maneuver that involves highly coordinated control actions and competing constraints. It is generally recognized that pilot performance in autorotation may benefit from additional cues that improve decision-making as well as timing and coordination of control inputs. This paper describes the development and simulator testing of various pilot cues designed for autorotation. A set of discrete and continuous cues are defined to assist in the initiation and execution of various phases of the maneuver. Furthermore, a reachability cue is created to assist a pilot in rapidly evaluating the vehicle glide distance, thereby facilitating selection of a landing site. Piloted simulated flight trials are performed using various combinations of cues in both good and degraded visual environments. Results are evaluated through assessment of pilot workload as well as quantitative measures of landing performance with and without the cues. Overall, results and pilot evaluations show the potential utility of several of the cueing methods but point to specific improvements to them that may facilitate more precise pilot tracking as well as reductions in task workload.