Human Factors Engineering #3 Crewstation Assessment for the OH-58F Helicopter

An assessment was conducted to identify design characteristics of the OH-58F crewstation that enhanced or degraded pilot performance. Aircrew workload, aircrew situation awareness, the crewstation interface, visual gaze and dwell times using a head-eye tracker, and the potential for pilot simulator sickness were assessed in an OH-58F simulator. Pilots flew missions based on a battlefield environment simulating southwest Asia. Each successive mission increased in difficulty in order to impose progressively greater workload on the pilots. Pilots reported that workload was manageable for the tasks they performed during the missions. The overall workload ratings provided by the pilots and subject matter experts SMEs were lower than the Objective and Threshold workload rating requirements listed in the OH-58F Capability Development Document. The pilots reported that they had moderate levels of situation awareness during the missions. They commented that the crewstation design aided them in conducting navigation, communication and reconnaissance tasks. The pilots recommended that minor design changes be made to the crewstation to enhance usability. The assessment was the third in a series of evaluations to develop and refine the crewstation design. Additional evaluations included human factors modeling, developmental and operational testing.