The purpose of this study is to conduct a detailed analysis of the limitation of visual awareness that flight crew experience while conducting visual approaches to an airport. Visual awareness is critical while conducting visual approaches and it is important to study the factors that can limit the capabilities of human beings to maintain visual awareness. This research will explore the limitations of visual awareness which special emphasis on change blindness, inattentional blindness, and visual masking. This study will also focus on forms of cognitive bias such as expectation and confirmation bias in the flight deck. Visual approaches expose pilots to multiple and critical visual stimuli that require strong visual awareness for safe operations. This research will explore visual approaches in air carrier operations around the world and conduct a detailed analysis of the Flight Safety Foundation accident database to study the reported incidents during visual approaches in air carriers from 2008-2018. The effect of human factors will be studied in those incidents with special emphasis on the role of visual awareness and cognitive bias.
The results from the Flight Safety Foundation data is quantified and a trend analysis is carried out. Fatigue and distractions inside the cockpit such as annunciation and alerts during high task saturation periods are analyzed to be major factors for incidents during visual approaches. Enhanced Crew Resource Management (CRM) procedures and varying Standard Operating Procedures(SOPs) for different Flight Duty Periods(FDPs) are some of the recommended practices that were analyzed in the study.