Date of Award

Spring 1995

Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Degree Name

Master of Aeronautical Science

Department

Aeronautical Science

Committee Chair

Dr. John Wise

Committee Member

Dr. Jefferson Koonce

Committee Member

Dr. Daniel Garland

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine if a checklist that varied by sequence would enable the pilot to detect potential errors more easily than those who used an unchanging checklist. A flight hour based stratified sample of pilots were randomly divided into two groups and flew a series of eight flights in a light twin aircraft simulator. The control group used the same checklist for each trial; the experimental group used a checklist that covered the same items but varied in sequence for each trial. Faults were introduced in the last two trials. The number of faults discovered or missed and the time required for each subject to perform the pre-departure checklist was recorded. The results indicated that there was significant difference in time between groups and over for trials (1-6). There was no significant difference between groups after a fault was introduced in trials seven and eight. There was no difference in error rate.

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