Developing a collision avoidance system that can meet safety standards required of commercial aviation is challenging. A dynamic programming approach to collision avoidance has been developed to optimize and generate logics that are robust to the complex dynamics of the national airspace. The current approach represents the aircraft avoidance problem as Markov Decision Processes and independently optimizes a horizontal and vertical maneuver avoidance logics. This is a result of the current memory requirements for each logic, simply combining the logics will result in a significantly larger representation. The "curse of dimensionality" makes it computationally inefficient and unfeasible to optimize this larger representation. However, existing and future collision avoidance systems have mostly defined the decision process by hand. In response, a simulation-based framework was built to better understand how each potential state quantifies the aircraft avoidance problem with regards to safety and operational components. The framework leverages recent advances in signals processing and database, while enabling the highest fidelity analysis of Monte Carlo aircraft encounter simulations to date. This framework enabled the calculation of how well each state of the decision process quantifies the collision risk and the associated memory requirements. Using this analysis, a collision avoidance logic that leverages both horizontal and vertical actions was built and optimized using this simulation based approach.

abstract: The aviation industry is considered to be the safest when it comes to transportation of people and property. The standards by which companies provide air transportation are held are very high. Nevertheless, a shortage in the number of pilots exists and companies must look for ways to meet demands. One of the ways to resolve this issue is to introduce unmanned systems on a broader scale – to transport people and property. The public’s perception regarding this issue has not been well documented. This survey identified what the public’s attitude is towards the use of these systems. One hundred fifty-seven people participated in this survey. Statistical analyses were conducted to determine if participant demographics, previous aviation background, and comfort levels were significantly related to various transportation technologies. Those who were comfortable or uncomfortable with self-driving cars kept their same comfort level for other technologies such as drone delivery services. The survey also revealed that the vast majority of respondents did not feel comfortable being a passenger on fully autonomous aircraft. With an overwhelming percentage of society not comfortable with the idea of there being no pilot for the aircraft, it is important for companies working to implement this technology to pay close attention to the public perception of autonomous aircraft. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Technology 2018

D.Com. (Business Management) / World wide both the military and general aviation markets have undergone drastic changes. The major reasons for the decline in the military aviation market was the advent of peace on the macro level, when the cold war between the Western coalition of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) stopped abruptly (IngersolI Engineers, 1994:27). The formidable military-industrial complexes built up during the cold war years now switched their attention to the general aviation markets, which at the time were already on the decline. This caused even more hardship in the markets and the whole industry slipped into a major recession throughout Europe and the United States of America, characterised by low capacity utilisation, high unemployment and very low profit margins (IngersolI Engineers, 1994:34). South Africa, with its relatively small aviation industry, was similarly affected, forcing the few organisations still in the market to either diversify or to move into the global market (Ingersoll Engineers, 1994:46)...

L'analyse d'événements aériens révèle que la plupart des accidents aéronautiques ont pour origine une surveillance inadaptée de paramètres de vol induite par une vigilance réduite, le stress ou une charge de travail importante. Une solution prometteuse pour améliorer la sécurité aérienne est d'étudier le regard des pilotes. La pupille est un bon indicateur de l'état attentionnel/cognitif tandis que les mouvements oculaires révèlent des stratégies de prises d'information. La question posée dans ce manuscrit est d'évaluer l'apport de l'oculométrie pour la sécurité aérienne par les contributions suivantes : 1-2) Les deux premières études de ce doctorat ont démontré que les effets d'interaction entre la luminance et la charge cognitive sur la réaction pupillaire. La composante pupillaire impactée dépend de la nature de la charge - soutenue ou transitoire. 3) Un cadre mathématique développé fournit un moyen d'illustration de schémas visuels pour l'analyse qualitative. Ce cadre ouvre également la voie à de nouvelles méthodes pour comparer quantitativement ces schémas visuels. 4) Une technique originale d'analyse de fixations et de construction d'un ratio "exploration-exploitation" est proposée et est appliquée dans deux cas d'études en simulateur de vol. 5) Enfin, on propose un cadre théorique d'intégration de l'oculométrie dans les cockpits. Ce cadre comporte quatre étapes présentées dans, à la fois, l'ordre chronologique de l'intégration et la complexité technique de réalisation. / Most aviation accidents include failures in monitoring or decision-making which are hampered by arousal, stress or high workload. One promising avenue to further enhance the flight safety is looking into the pilots' eyes. The pupil is a good indicator of cognitive/attentional states while eye movements reveal monitoring strategies. This thesis reflected upon the application of eye tracking in aviation with following contributions: 1-2) The two pupil experiments revealed that the luminance impacts the cognitive pupil reaction. Depending on the nature of the cognitive load - sustained or transient - the corresponding pupillary component would be impacted. The same amount of cognitive load under dimmer luminance condition would elicit larger tonic pupil diameter in a sustained load paradigm and larger phasic pupil response in a transient load paradigm. 3) We designed a novel mathematical framework and method that provide comprehensive illustrations of scanpaths for qualitative analysis. This framework also makes a lane for new methods of scanpaths comparison. 4) The developed technique of analysis of fixations and construction of "explore-exploit" ratio is presented and verifed on the data from two experiments in flight simulators. 5) Eventually, we proposed a framework of eye tracking integration into the cockpits. It contains four stages presented in both chronological order of its integration and technical complexity.

This dissertation evaluates and elevates the perception of the strategic use of design for airlines, especially a Silent Design airline like Saudia Airlines. Saudia Airlines is an international airline located in the Gulf region in the Middle East. In comparison to some other Gulf state airlines, Saudia Airlines benefits from its large geographical coverage, and is considered to be one of the richest and longest established carriers in the industry. However, the rapid growth during the past few years of other Gulf carriers (e.g. Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways) highlights the necessity for improvements to be made by Saudia Airlines so that it can sustain its position in the global market. These three mega Gulf airlines have shown major developments in their strategic use of design in delivering innovative and differentiated design touch points in their customer journeys. The purpose of this research is to ‘create a design management conceptual framework (DMCF) to assist Saudia Airlines in evaluating and elevating the perception of the strategic value of design.’ To date, airlines adopting a Silent Design approach have rarely been addressed in empirical studies. To achieve this, secondary research investigated several topics, mainly the perception of the strategic use of design, the operational use of design and how design was managed based on design management evolution. Furthermore, design outcomes are presented after implementing the strategic use of design, to deliver innovative and differentiated results. Moreover, the case studies of several companies are presented that use design at a strategic level, especially in the airline industry. The primary research investigated key stakeholders’ views (customers, design experts and Saudia Airlines’ employees and design consultants). The findings from these investigations, and emergent key themes and sub-themes created the prototypes that led to the formulation of the DMCF, which is the main contribution of this study. The DMCF was developed and tested with experts in the field. The proposed framework is considered a significant starting point for airlines that want to evaluate and elevate their perception of the strategic use of design. The DMCF addresses the significant results of this study and key points are made, as follows: 1) Four key dimensions are identified: a) organisational mind-set, b) structure and design capabilities, c) design process and communication, and d) customer experience, which could evaluate and elevate the strategic use of design. 2) The Silent Design culture is identified as pertaining to Saudia Airlines in this study. This culture emphasises the moderate ambition of the strategic use of design by using it at an operational level. It also includes an ill-defined structure for managing design and a lack of design capabilities. In addition, it has an unclear design process and ad hoc cross-departmental collaboration. The overall result is that the Silent Design organisations’ customer experiences are characterised by undifferentiated products and services. 3) The Strategic Design culture is identified and addresses the airlines that make good use of design. This culture emphasises the strong ambition of the strategic use of design by using it at a strategic level. It also includes a systematic and clear structure for managing design. It has a clear design process and clear cross-departmental collaboration. The overall result is that Strategic Design organisations maintain their position as innovators and differentiators within the airline industry. 4) Some recommendations are made that target how to bridge the gap between these two cultures, including appointing a design leader within a Silent Design culture airline. This would elevate the airlines’ perceptions of the strategic use of design.

[pt] No presente trabalho foram desenvolvidos métodos analíticos para a determinação seletiva de azaarenos básicos. Extração em fase sólida (SPE, do inglês solid phase extraction) em combinação com cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência com detector de fluorescência (HPLC-FD, do inglês high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector) foram utilizados como um método sensível para a determinação de seis azaarenos básicos (7,8-benzoquinolina - 78BQ, 7,9-dimetilbenzo[c]acridina - 79DMBA, 9-amino-1,2,3,4-tetrahidroacridina - 9ATHA, 9-metilacridina - 9MA, acridina - A, e dibenzo[a,j]acridina - DBA) em amostras de querosene de aviação (QAV) e querosene comercial. O procedimento de extração foi realizado em uma única etapa usando um cartucho de ácido propilsulfônico. Para HPLC, foram utilizados separação em fase reversa (C18) e um programa de detecção com os comprimentos de onda ótimos de excitação e de emissão. Um gradiente de eluição com acetonitrila (ACN) e tampão fosfato (pH 6,5) permitiu uma separação rápida e eficiente dos azaarenos em menos de 15 min. Os valores de LOD e LOQ, baseados na razão sinal-ruído de 3:1 e 10:1, respectivamente, ficaram entre 0,0013 e 0,021 e entre 0,0044 e 0,072 ng injetados. As curvas analíticas mostraram comportamento linear na faixa de trabalho estudada, LOQ a 250 ug L(-1), (r2 > 0,99). Para uma amostra de QAV fortificada com 6,0 ug L(-1), as recuperações foram de 92 a 107%, exceto para a 9ATHA, que apresentou um valor de recuperação menor (68%). Finalmente, o método proposto foi aplicado para a quantificação dos seis azaarenos básicos em uma amostra de querosene doméstico e em três amostras de QAV. A presença de 78BQ e DBA foi confirmada nas amostras de QAV. Em seguida, estudos para o desenvolvimento de métodos por eletroforese capilar foram avaliados para a quantificação dos azaarenos básicos em QAV. Em cromatografia eletrocinética capilar micelar, as condições selecionadas para a separação dos analitos, na fase preliminar de estudo, foram: tampão borato 20 mmol L(-1) contendo 40 mmol L(-1) de SDS, 20% de metanol e 2 mol L(-1) de uréia, pH 9,5; condições instrumentais: 30 kV, 30 °C e 10 s de injeção hidrodinâmica por pressão de 50 mbar. No caso de eletroforese capilar de zona (CZE), as condições selecionadas para a separação e a préconcentração dos analitos em linha foram: tampão fosfato 50 mmol L-1 contendo 25% de ACN, pH 2,65; condições instrumentais: 25 kV, 25 °C e 150 s de injeção hidrodinâmica por pressão de 50 mbar; amostra dissolvida em tampão fosfato 1 mmol L(-1) contendo 20% de ACN. Um capilar de sílica fundida com 64,5 cm de comprimento (56 cm efetivos), 50 (u)m de diâmetro interno e 150 (u)m de caminho óptico foi utilizado. Os valores de LOD e LOQ para o método CZE ficaram entre 0,68 e 3,2 e entre 1,1 e 7,7 (u)g L(-1), respectivamente. Os resultados obtidos até o momento indicam, com perspectivas positivas, que é possível aplicar CZE com pré-concentração em linha para a determinação dos azaarenos básicos em QAV. Entretanto, um estudo mais detalhado para melhorar a resolução e a sensibilidade e diminuir o tempo de análise ainda se faz necessário. Além disso, o procedimento de extração dos analitos da amostra de QAV deve ser ajustado para, além de proporcionar bons resultados de recuperação, ser compatível com o método de análise desenvolvido. Finalmente, um método alternativo foi desenvolvido, usando a aquisição de espectros de fluorescência por varredura sincronizada e a análise dos dados por mínimos quadrados parciais (PLS) para a determinação simultânea dos mesmos seis azaarenos em QAV. Foram utilizadas 40 amostras sintéticas, contendo os seis analitos em estudo, na faixa de 10 a 100 (u)g L(-1) em Metanol:HCl 0,01 mol L(-1). Os espectros de varredura sincronizada foram obtidos com (delta)(lambda) = 30, 120 e 150 nm. Na construção dos modelos de regressão PLS foram empregadas 20 amostras para calibração e 20 para a previsão (et / [en] In this work, analytical methods were developed for the selective determination of basic azaarenes. Solid phase extraction (SPE) in combination with high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLCFD) has been used for the sensitive method determination of six basic azaarenes (7,8-benzoquinoline - 78BQ, 7,9-dimethylbenz[c]acridine - 79DMBA, 9-amino- 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroacridine - 9ATHA, 9-methylacridine - 9MA, acridine - A, and dibenz[a,j]acridine - DBA) in jet fuel samples. The extraction process was performed in a single step using a propyl sulfonic acid cartridge (PRS). The HPLC system consisted of C18 column with a selected detection program of optimum excitation ((lambda) exc) and emission ((lambda)em) wavelengths. A gradient elution with ACN and phosphate buffer (pH 6.5) allowed an efficient and fast separation of the azaarenes within 15 min. The LOD and LOQ values, based on signal-to-noise ratio 3:1 and 10:1, respectively, were between 0.0013 and 0.021 and from 0.0044 to 0.072 ng per injection. The calibration curves showed linear behavior in range from LOQ to 250 mg L(-1) (r(2) > 0.99). For the spiked concentration of 6.0 (u)g L(-1), the recoveries were from 92 to 107% for jet fuel samples, except for 9ATHA, which presented a lower recovery value (68%). Finally, the proposed method was applied to the quantification of those six basic azaarenes in a commercial kerosene sample and in three jet fuel samples. The presence of 78BQ and DBA was confirmed in the jet fuel samples. Capillary electrophoresis methods were evaluated for the quantification of the basic azaarenes in jet fuel samples. In MECC, the best conditions for the separation of the analytes, in the preliminary phase of study, have been: 20 mmol L(-1) borate buffer with 25% of methanol and 40 mmol L(-1) SDS (pH 9.5) as the background solution; instrumental conditions: 30 kV, 30 °C and hydrodynamic injection (50 mbar) for 10 s. In CZE, the best conditions for the separation of the analytes have been: 50 mmol L(-1) phosphate buffer with 25 % of acetonitrile (pH 2.65) as the background solution; instrumental conditions: 25 kV, 25 °C and hydrodynamic injection (50 mbar) for 150 s; sample solvent: 1 mmol L(-1) phosphate buffer with 20 % of acetonitrile. A fused-silica capillary of 50 mm ID x 64.5 cm (56 cm effective length) x 150 mm path length has been used. The LOD and LOQ values were between 0.68 and 3.2 and from 1.1 to 7.7 (u)g L(-1), respectively. The previous results showed positive perspectives to apply CZE with on-line pre-concentration for the determination of the basic azaarenes in jet fuel. However, a more detailed study to improve the resolution and sensitivity and to reduce the analysis time is still necessary. Moreover, the procedure of the analytes extraction from the kerosene sample must be adjusted for providing good results of recovery and to be compatible with the developed method of analysis. Finally, an alternative method was developed, using fluorescence spectra acquisition by synchronous scan and partial least square regression (PLS), for determination of the same basic azaarenes. 40 synthetic mixtures were used in the range of 10 to 100 (u)g L(-1). The synchronous scan spectra were obtained using (lambda)(delta) = 30,120 and 150 nm. In the PLS models, 20 samples were used for calibration and 20 for test. The clean-up procedure was adapted from the HPLC-FD method employing Methanol:HCl 0,01 mol L(-1) as the final solvent of the extraction. The extracts were analyzed by HPLC and the results were used as reference values. The LOD and LOQ values, calculated from the net analytical signal (NAS), were between 0.045 and 2.0 and from 0.15 to 6.6 (u)g L(-1), respectively. The relative standard errors of prediction (%RSEP) were from 3.0 to 10% for the sample test set. For the spiked jet fuel sample the %RSEP were between 4.9 and 11% for four of the six studied analytes, since it

Commercial air travel is regarded as the safest mode of transportation known to humankind; however, every year people lose their lives from aircraft accidents and incidents. In addition, the financial impact of an air disaster can destroy an airline organisation. Studies have found that in adverse events involving highly advanced aircraft employing complex automation, human factor issues, and particularly pilot training, continue to play a significant causal role. Special attention should therefore be paid to the training of airline pilots, who are ultimately the last line of defence in aircraft operations. Airline pilots’ perceptions of the training climate associated with advanced aircraft can be a pervasive and powerful determinant of training outcomes and eventual flight deck behaviour. The study undertook to develop a valid and reliable instrument to measure airline pilots’ perceptions of the training climate associated with advanced aircraft equipped with highly complex automation. The goal was to construct a questionnaire by operationalizing an unobserved hypothesised construct (perceptions of the advanced automated aircraft training climate) based on three levels of analysis (the microsphere, mesosphere and macrosphere). The study also attempted to explore the statistical relationship between the demographic variables of the respondents and the latent factors of the construct. In order to meet the research objectives, the study began with a thorough review of the current literature on the topic to develop a systems model of the main construct under investigation. The review included a critique of the theory on organisational climate, learning, training and education, of historical data on aircraft automation, of human factors, and of aircraft accident investigation principles and case studies. The objectives of the research were fulfilled by strictly observing a positivist paradigm, and engaging in a quantitative exploration, triangulating methods with data captured from a purposive sample of the target population. The empirical study was completed in four phases. Firstly, the research construct was operationalized and the items in the proposed questionnaire validated by a panel of subject matter experts using Lawshe’s (1975) content validity ratio (CVR) technique. Inter-rater bias was assessed using Cochran’s Q test. This application resulted in the retention of 42 items. Secondly, factor analysis and item analysis was performed on the responses of the respondents for the development of the final 33 item measurement instrument. Thirdly, to explore the relationship between the demographic variables and the latent factors of the main construct, an appropriate non-parametric family of statistics was selected to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomena associated with the data. Finally, a logistic regression analysis that included specific demographic variables was performed for the development of a model to predict a pilot’s perception of the training climate associated with advanced automated aircraft. A non-probability purposive sample of 17 subject matter experts and 229 qualified South African airline pilots was used to accomplish the goals of the study. The underlying structure of the advanced Automated Aircraft Training Climate Questionnaire (AATC-Q) was derived from the results of a Principal Axis Factor (PAF) analysis using a promax (Kappa-4) rotation. The number of factors extracted from the data set was based on a modified version of Horn’s (1965) parallel analysis, namely the Monte Carlo simulation algorithm designed by O’Connor (2000). Three core factors explained most of the underlying variability in the main construct. The first factor was a composite at the macro and meso levels of analysis, whilst the second and third factors became fragmented at the micro level of analysis. These three factors were then labelled Organisational Professionalism, Intrinsic Motivation and Individual Control of Training Outcomes. The quality and rigour of the derived scale were demonstrated by its content and construct validity. Overall, satisfactory results from computing Cronbach’s coefficient alpha showed that the measurement scale was also reliable. The effect of the demographic variables on airline pilots’ perceptions of the advanced automated aircraft training climate was determined by computing relationships and comparing the responses from different categorised subsets with one another, by means of a non-parametric MANOVA and non-parametric analysis of variance. The results of these tests revealed that Flight Deck Position, Size of the Airline, Computer Literacy and Flight Experience had a significant effect on a pilot’s perception of the training climate. Results from a logistic regression model indicated that the interaction between pilots’ experiences and their perceived level of computer literacy (on a sigmoid curve), their actual experience in advanced aircraft, and their preferences for route and simulator training, were related to whether a pilot perceived the advanced aircraft training climate as favourable or not. The overall percentage of cases for which the dependent variable was correctly predicted by the regression model was computed at 63.8%. This study represents a vital step toward an understanding of the dimensionality of the learning, education and training for, and the actual operation of, highly advanced commercial aircraft, which employ complex automation. The results provide sufficient empirical evidence to suggest that the research findings may be of particular interest to aviation psychologists, aviation safety practitioners, and airlines engaged in training pilots to operate advanced aircraft. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

This thesis deals with the general concept of Corporate Social Resonsibility (CSR), its principles and contributions which have been applied to the air transport market. The first chapter defines the notion of CSR, analyzes three pillars of sustainable development and discusses the opinions that fundamentally reject the CSR concept. The second and the third chapter look at the aviation industry from the sustainable development point of view. Discussion about social contributions of the air transport and current topics concerning sustainability are a basis for the theoretical model of CSR which has been constructed with regard to unique industry features. Execution of CSR policy is being analyzed in the last chapter. The CSR initiatives of the airline company are evaluated in terms of their impact on the company overall performance.

This final thesis deals with the analysis of the most important aspects which, through the technical side, influence the economic side. The thesis also shows the mistakes of manufacturers which have caused their prototypes to not succeed in civil or army aviation. The main goal is to connect the technical side of aviation with the economical because their very narrow connection influcences the future of aviation which is becoming more and more part of our lives. The thesis structure is: First theoretical part of the thesis deals with aviation terms because the knowledge of these terms connects to the second part. In the next part there is theoretical knowledge applied into practice. Used methods of comparativeness and analysis brought new results which has helped to fulfill the goal of this thesis.

As the topic of sustainability is gaining a lot of importance, organizations in the aviation industry are coming together to form networks. The purpose of the study is to understand the concept of inter-organizational networks as potential learning organizations and find out how facilitating processes that enable these inter-organizational networks like collaboration, communication and knowledge management operate within networks. Further research will explore processes of learning in networks to investigate alignment and resemblance with the concept of sustainable learning organization and provide an insight on organization structure and culture as enablers of learning. The basic design of the study consists of semi-structured interviews of two networks in the aviation industry as primary data in order to support research questions with empirical analysis. In addition, systematic review of academic literature and official websites of various network stakeholders was used as a secondary data collection source to discover track record of current research study in this field and identify knowledge gaps and areas for further study. Major findings include impact of formal and informal structure of networks on learning processes and objective setting for the network. It also depicts a need for a holistic and systematic approach at interorganizational level in order to form a learning organization. In the end culture was also identified as a learning enabler in networks that tend to be sustainable learning organizations.