SIMULATION AND ANALYSIS OF OVER-OCEAN SEPARATION ASSURANCE PROCEDURES AND DISPLAYS.

After an analysis of operational characteristics in North Atlantic air traffic and the Air Traffic Control system, standard operating procedures SOP for pilot use of air-derived separation information were developed and tested in flight simulators. Three individual system types were simulated Air-to-Air Distance Measuring Equipment DME, Airborne Beacon RangeAltitude Monitor, and Airborne TimeFrequency RangeAltitude Monitor TF. The capabilities and limitations of each system display in its initial form and pilot preferences were determined through exercise in a wide diversity of aircraft intrusion situations. Horizontal and vertical evasive maneuvers, as required by the SOP, were employed in all the test runs which included slow and fast-closing, as well as head-on encounters. Altitude probing before a vertical maneuver was tested. With immediate and assured communications, and with the tested SOP, the displays were all adequate to insure separation. Pilot preferences were for the simplest displays and controls. Densities above three conflicting aircraft were not tested nor were reception problems due to multipath or other physical sources of signal error included. Author