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At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources

Midair collisions in U.S. civil aviation 2000-2004: the roles of radio communications and altitude.

BACKGROUND: Midair collisions are destructive to aircraft and often fatal to occupants, with the additional possibility of death and destruction on the ground. We sought to determine the characteristics of civil aviation mid-air collisions in U.S. airspace with focus on the altitudes at which the collisions took place and radio communications prior to the collisions. METHODS: Accident reports published by the National Transportation and Safety Board for the period 2000-2004 were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Additional information was extracted from the narrative report of each accident. RESULTS: During the 5-yr period, 48 collisions in U.S. civil aviation occurred with 78 fatalities and 7 persons severely injured. There were 46 aircraft destroyed and 37 substantially damaged. In 14 cases no radio communication was reported. In 19 cases there appeared regular radio communication with a tower or other aircraft. CONCLUSIONS: Midair collisions resulted in fewer severe injuries at lower altitudes. Visibility and weather were not contributing factors. Radio communication is recommended to assist aircraft where practical, but pilots need to be made aware of the limitations of radio communication for the avoidance of midair collisions.

Accidents, Aviation↗

Primary flight training performance of student naval aviators with vision waivers.

Performance was studied for student naval aviators with waivers for defective uncorrected distance visual acuity who underwent primary flight training at NAS Whiting Field, FL, for fiscal year 1987 (cases = 45). Outcome variables were completion rate, primary flight training grades and flight hours. Controls for completion rate were all other students during that period (N = 1443). For training grades and hours, controls were selected who completed the same training squadron within 1 month of the case. Two controls were selected who progressed to the jet pipeline, with two additional controls selected who progressed to the same pipeline as the cases, either maritime/patrol or helicopter (controls = 180). Results demonstrated the cases were significantly more likely to complete training (p = 0.029), but not significantly different in primary flight grades or hours. These results suggest student naval aviators on vision waivers were competitive with their contemporaries.

Aviation↗

[Specific individual characteristics of aviation specialists of small professional groups with different levels of psychological compatibility].

Professional interaction of members of small groups of aviation operators was subject to psychophysiological analysis. Using the study of professional interaction of operators and the theory of operational mediation of personality relations, the major parameters characterizing psychological compatibility were determined. The practical application of these characteristics helped select small groups of aviation specialists, who differed largely in their psychological compatibility, compare them in terms of a great number of personality parameters, and define their various combinations. The list of variants presented may help better describe and predict psychological compatibility of members of small professional groups.

Aviation↗

Pilots' perception of risks and hazards in general aviation.

A sample of licensed pilots completed the Aeronautical Risk Judgment Questionnaire (ARJQ) which was developed to obtain data on pilots' perceptions of their abilities, willingness to take risks, hazard awareness, and judgments of the risks of general aviation. A subset of these subjects was tested on a computerised test of flight decision-making involving a proposed VFR flight in marginal weather conditions. Results from the ARJQ indicate relatively low levels of risk and hazard awareness combined with a generally optimistic self-appraisal of abilities by this sample of general aviation pilots. Younger subjects (under 30) were found to rate the likelihood of being involved in an accident more highly than did older pilots. Experienced pilots obtained higher scores on a measure of "personal invulnerability" from factors commonly associated with accidents. This does not appear to be due simply to overconfidence in their abilities, since it was the younger and less experienced pilots who held the most unrealistically optimistic appraisals of their ability. Pilots who proceeded with the computerised flight rate themselves as having a greater willingness to take risks, and were likely to be younger and have higher total hours than those who rejected the flight. They were also found to have significantly higher scores on the measure of "personal invulnerability." The results are discussed in relation to previous epidemiological findings and possible safety prevention strategies.

Accidents, Aviation↗

The Aviation Psychology Program at RAF Upper Heyford.

An Aviation Psychology Program was started in September, 1985 at RAF Upper Heyford, with the focus on teaching flight commanders and their wives to recognize and deal with aircrew member and family stress. The overall goal is to prevent aircraft accidents and mishaps caused by human factor errors. Case reports are presented which demonstrate the value of the aviation psychologist becoming integrated in the flying community. The program has been successful, but needs further commitment and support.

Accidents, Aviation↗

IgA nephropathy in a student naval aviator.

Microscopic hematuria is not infrequently seen in the aviator population. After appropriate evaluation, excluding renal biopsy, such a finding is commonly diagnosed as "benign microscopic hematuria," and no further action is taken. The clinical case presented here involves a student naval aviator whose only findings were microscopic hematuria and a unilateral high-frequency hearing loss. A renal biopsy was performed to rule out another diagnosis and IgA nephropathy was found incidentally. He was subsequently denied clearance to fly because of the uncertain outcome of the disease. Berger's disease is discussed fully as to its clinical picture, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis.

Adult↗

1985 Lindbergh lecture. Some personal perspectives on aviation progress.

Aviation has opened new opportunities for both individual achievement and public service during the past 80 years. The author discusses his experiences during the second half of the modern era of powered flight, including combat activities during World War II, work as a test pilot developing flying techniques for the first jets, challenging the world altitude record, and assessing the performance capacities of different aircraft. The lecture devotes special attention to aerobatic flying, especially the properties of the spin. The author relates these personal experiences to the responsibilities of guiding modern aviation to improved public service in the coming years.

Aircraft↗

Agricultural aviation medicine in the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Union has developed one of the world's most sophisticated civil aviation medicine programs. The program gives specific attention to aerial application operations and includes special preflight pilot medical examinations, aircraft with specialized protective airflow systems for the pilots, minimum flight altitude spraying limit of 5 m, and the use of a "chemical log book" by each pilot in addition to the flight log book. These and additional steps--i.e. limiting a pilot's daily agricultural flights to 4-6 h--have led to a reported USSR agricultural aviation annual accident rate near zero. The Soviet workhorse aircraft, the Antonov AN-2, can serve multipurpose roles since, when not used for application flights, it can be rapidly converted to executive, courier, cargo, or air taxi, or air ambulance use. A new, single-engine turbojet biplane, the Polish M-15, is undergoing evaluation in the Soviet Union as a replacement for the AN-2. Countries with very high agricultural aircraft accident rates may wish to study the Soviet approach, especially the use by the pilot of a chemical log book.

Accident Prevention↗

[Work environment and health status of agricultural aviation personnel].

The morbidity rate and present health status of flying agricultural aviation personnel under health care of the Main Military Medical Committee for aviation workers were analysed and compared with another group of helicopter pilots. A detailed clinical examination of 77 "Agro" pilots indicated more trauma cases than idiopathic diseases cases, some of those trauma cases were due to professional work. Analysis of the present health status indicated the predominance of pilots with just one health disturbance, pilots with no health disturbances taking the second position in the comparison. The health deviations did not differ from those in other populations, as classified by pilots' age. On the other hand, their percentage was higher than in helicopters pilots control group. Average age of "Agro" pilots was relatively high and number of hours spent in air considerable, too.

Accidents, Aviation↗

[Ecological aspects of aviation ergonomics].

The authors analyzed human role in ecologic system, using the principle "human--environment--health", and human function in ecologic and ergonomic system, using the principle "operator--environment--occupational reliability" for aviation ergonomics. Unfavorable ecologic environment influencing the operator was considered a complex stress factor composed of objective environmental and emotional elements. The authors describe human response to physiologically adequate and inadequate stress factors. The article stresses good prospects associated with application of aviation ergonomics to targeting some problems.

Aviation↗

Recurrent erythema nodosum in an aviator.

Erythema nodosum is an uncommon skin eruption frequently associated with underlying infections, systemic diseases, or drug toxicity. We report the case of a 27-year-old aviator with three occurrences of erythema nodosum attributed to streptococcal pharyngitis. We review the causes of erythema nodosum to emphasize the importance of a thorough investigation to rule out serious underlying disease prior to returning an aviator to flight status.

Adult↗

Urinary 5-hydroxytryptophol following acute ethanol consumption: clinical evaluation and potential aviation applications.

HYPOTHESIS: The unknown prevalence of alcohol use and misuse among aviation pilots, crewmembers and associated support personnel call for continuous improvement of methods for detecting recent alcohol use. Early detection is essential to proper treatment and prevention of potentially catastrophic mishaps. Urinary 5-hydroxytryptophol (5HTOL), a serotonin (5HT) metabolite, has shown promise in the clinical setting as a noninvasive marker of recent alcohol consumption. METHODS: The urinary 5HTOL concentrations of 11 male and female subjects were followed for approximately 24 h following dosing with ethanol 0.6 g.kg-1. Concentrations were reported as a ratio of 5HTOL to 5-hydroxy-indoleacetic acid (5HIAA), 5HTOL/5HIAA (pmol/nmol), to compensate for urinary dilution and elevated 5HTOL levels due to dietary intake. Data from one male subject was excluded after he admitted to continued alcohol consumption subsequent to dosing and missing several urine samples. RESULTS: 5HTOL/5HIAA ratios remained above the 15 pmol/nmol cutoff for recent alcohol use for approximately 11-16 h in all except one subject. Calculations based on body weight and administered alcohol dose suggest that measurable blood alcohol levels would exist for only 5-7 h post ingestion. CONCLUSION: This study confirmed the extended elevation of 5HTOL/5HIAA ratios observed in earlier studies, even at the relatively low alcohol dose used herein. 5HTOL appears to be a marker for acute alcohol consumption worthy of further investigation by military and civilian authorities. Potential aviation applications of 5HTOL include validation of measurable blood alcohol concentrations, investigation of poor performance due to hangover effects, and as a forensic toxicology tool in aircraft accident investigations to distinguish between actual alcohol ingestion and post-mortem alcohol synthesis.

Acute Disease↗

Role of metabolites in aviation forensic toxicology.

In aviation accident investigations, specimens from fatal aircraft victims are analyzed for drugs. The presence of drugs suggests possible associated medical conditions for which they might have been taken. As drugs are mostly present in therapeutic to subtherapeutic levels in aviation forensic toxicology cases, determination of parent drugs and their metabolites in multispecimens is of significance. Although chemically reactive metabolites are difficult to detect, physiologically active and inactive metabolites can be analyzed. Selective and sensitive techniques are available, but unavailability of metabolite reference standards, endogenous substance interference, and low tissue metabolite levels limit the analyses. However, the majority of primary metabolites can be effectively characterized/quantitated. Demonstrating the presence of drug (e.g., terfenadine, cocaine, THC) metabolites provides a compelling evidence for exposure to the parent drug and facilitates interpretation of results, particularly when the metabolites are active. Such analyses are not as helpful if the metabolites are also available as drugs (e.g., diazepam, temazepam, oxazepam).

Accidents, Aviation↗

[Improvement of protective and survival means as a current ecological-ergonomic problem in aviation].

Science and application aspects of the ergonomic enhancement of protective and survival means for aviation personnel under the present-day operational environment have been studied. Substantiated and presented is a concept of ergonomic enhancement of these means and possibly marked improvement of professional readiness, and maintenance of work capacity and occupational health of aviation personnel affected by a combination of adverse factors by way of a more thorough consideration of human operator's characteristics in the process of design and evaluation of protective means. Methods proposed for evaluation of environmental effects on and assessment of the ergonomic stimulation of the quality and intensity of flying activity have been analyzed.

Aerospace Medicine↗

Joint Committee on Aviation Pathology: I. Fatal aircraft accidents.

The Department of Aviation Pathology was established at RAF Halton in 1955, and is now 21 years old; the early history of aviation pathology and the establishment of the department following the Comet disaster in 1954 are briefly recounted. The past work of the department and possible future trends are discussed, including the importance of helicopter accidents, the value of periodical medical examination, the problems in large passenger aircraft crashes and the subsequent medico-legal difficulties.

Accidents, Aviation↗

Fatigue in the aviation environment: an overview of the causes and effects as well as recommended countermeasures.

Fatigue is an insidious threat to aviation safety because of the impairments in alertness and performance it creates. The fatigue associated with sleep loss, shift work, and long duty cycles can cause aviators to become sloppy, inattentive, careless, and inefficient. The only cure for fatigue is adequate sleep; however, gaining sufficient amounts of sleep is often difficult because of work requirements, family demands, or poor sleep habits. Although it may not be possible to avoid some of these problems, pilots can improve their sleep habits and thus gain more restful and restorative sleep by using self-administered relaxation therapy, establishing consistent and soothing bedtime routines, and avoiding certain activities and substances immediately prior to sleep. When opportunities for adequate sleep are not available because of work-related factors, prophylactic naps can sustain performance until sleep is possible.

Aerospace Medicine↗

Aviation gasoline: comparative subchronic nephrotoxicity study in the male rat.

Biochemical and histopathologic parameters of nephrotoxicity were measured in groups of male Fischer-344 rats after a 2-week, 5-days-a-week schedule of oral administration (0.5 ml/kg) of the following substances: aviation gasoline (grade 100) (AVG), automobile regular unleaded gasoline (ULG) and 2,2,4-trimethylpentane (TMP). Results of renal histopathologic examinations and biochemical parameters were compatible with the following order of increasing nephrotoxicity: ULG less than TMP less than AVG. The high nephrotoxic potential of aviation gasoline may be related to its elevated content in branched hydrocarbons.

Acetylglucosaminidase↗

Historical ties between otolaryngology-head and neck surgery and aviation and space medicine.

Otolaryngology-head and neck surgeons have been involved in the development of aviation and space medicine since the beginning of this century. More than 75 years ago, otolaryngologists revised the physical examination for pilots, organized "boards of medical examiners" to test pilot applicants, coined the term "flight surgeon," and helped organize the first medical research laboratories at Hazelhurst Field in New York. These laboratories were transformed in 1922 into the School of Aviation Medicine at Brooks Field, Texas, which in turn subsequently was relocated to Randolph Field, Texas. During World War II the Director of Research at the school was Colonel Paul A. Campbell, MD, an otolaryngologist. In 1959, the school moved back to Brooks Air Force Base and was renamed the Aerospace Medical Center. Since manned space flight began in the 1960s there have been many joint research efforts between principal investigators in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery and NASA. Several otolaryngology-head and neck surgeons have served or currently serve as consultants and advisors to many of NASA's standing committees. The space environment offers a new frontier for development and research in the specialty and for better understanding of vestibular function and related disorders.

Aerospace Medicine↗