Operational Use of Flight
Path Management Systems:
Status of Recommendations of the
Performance-Based Operations
Aviation Rulemaking Committee
(PARC)/ Commercial Aviation Safety
Team (CAST) Flight Deck Automation
Working Group
Kathy Abbott and Robert Burke
Federal Aviation Administration
4 February 2015
Federal Aviation
Administration
Eighteen Recommendations
• Activity on most recommendations
• Developing Action Plans for specific
recommendations – in work
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Administration
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Recommendation 1 – Manual Flight Operations.
Develop and implement standards and guidance for
maintaining and improving knowledge and skills for
manual flight operations that include the following:
• Pilots must be provided with opportunities to refine this
knowledge and practice the skills;
• Training and checking should directly address this
topic; and
• Operators’ policies for flight path management must
support and be consistent with the training and practice
in the aircraft type.
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Administration
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Recommendation 1 – Manual Flight
Operations: Implementation Status
• SAFO 13002 Manual Flight Operations
• Notice to Inspectors 8900.xxx
– POIs review of air carrier policies regarding the
use of autoflight systems and verification those
the policies encourage pilots to exercise manual
flight operations when appropriate. (Spring
2015)
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Administration
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Administration
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Recommendation 1 – Manual Flight
Operations: Implementation Status
• SAFO 13002 Manual Flight Operations
• Final Rule on 121 Subpart N&O maneuvers, manually
flown loss of reliable airspeed, manually flown slow
flight, manually flown arrivals and departures
• MITRE research
• Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Certification Training
Program (CTP) required by the Pilot Certification and
Qualification Requirements for Air Carrier Operations
final rule
• Guidance to be recommended by the Air Carrier
Training Aviation Rulemaking Committee
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Administration
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Air Carrier Training (ACT) Aviation Rulemaking
Committee (ARC) Charter
The ACT ARC will provide a forum for the United States aviation community to
discuss, prioritize, and provide recommendations to the FAA concerning
operations conducted under parts 121, 135, and 142. The general objectives and
scope are to:
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•
•
•
•
Develop and recommend to the FAA new or updated guidance material,
notices, handbooks, and other related materials for air carrier training and
qualification.
Make recommendations, including necessary rulemaking and additional
tasking, to the Administrator through the Associate Administrator for Aviation
Safety.
Discuss global air carrier training issues and develop strategies for
international harmonization.
Provide documentation and technical information to support
recommendations.
Form and provide committee oversight of specialized work groups to research,
document, and make recommendations on specific, assigned topics.
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Co-Chairs
 Robert Burke Designated Federal Official
Manager, Air Carrier Training Systems
and Voluntary Safety Programs Branch,
(AFS-280)
 Don Dillman
ARC Industry Chair
(Federal Express)
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Administration
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Membership
Aerospace Industries Association (AIA)
Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations (CAPA)
Airline Dispatchers Federation (ADF)
Flight Safety International (FSI)
Airline Pilots Association (ALPA)
National Air Carrier Association (NACA)
Airlines for America (A4A)
National Air Transportation Association (NATA)
Association of Flight Attendants (AFA)
National Business Aviation Association (NBAA)
Association of Professional Flight
Attendants (APFA)
Regional Airline Association (RAA)
CAE
Regional Air Cargo Carrier Association (RACCA)
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Administration
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ACT ARC Working Groups
• Flight Path Management
– Industry chair: Lou Nemeth, CAE
– FAA Subject Matter Expert (SME): Kathy Abbott
• Alternative Training Pathways to ATP Certification
– Industry chair: Jon Tovani, Delta and Chuck Hogeman, ALPA
– FAA SME: Barbara Adams, AFS-280
• Air Carrier Contract Training
– Industry chair: John McGraw, NATA
– FAA SME: Mark Valette, AFS-280
• Cross-Functional Crew Resource Management
– Industry chair: Kelly Skyles, APFA
– FAA SMEs: Doug Farrow and Sherry Miller, AFS-280
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Recommendation 2 - Autoflight Mode Awareness.
For the near term, emphasize and encourage
improved training and flightcrew procedures
to improve autoflight mode awareness as part of
an emphasis on flight path management.
For the longer term, equipment design should
emphasize reducing the number and
complexity of autoflight modes from the pilot’s
perspective and improve the feedback to pilots (e.g., on
mode transitions) while ensuring that the design of the
mode logic assists with pilots’ intuitive interpretation of
failures and reversions.
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Administration
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Recommendation 2 - Autoflight Mode
Awareness: Implementation status
• AFS:
– Revision to AC 120-71A, Standard Operating Procedures for
Flight Deck Crewmembers. Anticipated completion Dec. 2015
– Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Certification Training Program
(CTP). Guidance Complete. Course required as a prerequisite for
taking the ATP knowledge test after Aug. 2014.
• AIR:
– 25.1302 Installed Systems and Equipment for Use by the
Flightcrew
– 25.1329 Flight Guidance Systems sets requirements for the
performance, safety, failure protection, alerting, and basic
annunciation of flight guidance systems. The rule responds to a
series of incidents and accidents that have highlighted
difficulties for flightcrews interacting with the increasing
automation of flight decks.
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Administration
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Recommendation 3 – Information Automation.
• Develop or enhance guidance for documentation,
training, and procedures for information
automation systems (e.g., Electronic Flight Bags (EFBs),
moving map displays, performance management calculations,
multi-function displays) or functions:
• Describe what is meant by Information Automation
and what systems, equipment are included,
• Define terms associated with Information Automation,
• Develop guidelines concerning the content and structure
of policy statements in Flight Operations Policy Manuals for
Information Automation, and
• Develop operational procedures to avoid informationautomation-related errors.
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Administration
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Recommendation 3 – Information Automation:
Implementation Status
• Advisory Circular (AC) 120-76B Guidelines for
Certification, Airworthiness, and Operational Use of
Electronic Flight Bags is currently published and
provides up to date guidance on EFB
implementation. Change 1 provides updated
guidance on Moving Map Display functions.
• Multiple R&D studies are in progress by Honeywell,
MITRE, and Volpe concerning information
automation systems.
• Revision to AC 120-71A Standard Operating
Procedures for Flight Deck Crewmembers is
underdevelopment.
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Administration
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Recommendation 4 – FMS Documentation, Design,
Training, and Procedures for Operational Use.
In the near term, develop or enhance guidance for
flightcrew documentation, training and procedures for
FMS use.
For the longer term, research should be conducted on
new interface designs and technologies that support
pilot tasks, strategies and processes, as opposed to
machine or technology-driven strategies.
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Administration
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Recommendation 4 – FMS Documentation, Design,
Training, and Procedures for Operational Use:
Implementation Status
• Augment existing guidance in AC 90-105 Approval
Guidance for RNP Operations and Barometric
Vertical Guidance in the U.S. National Airspace
System and Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM)
• PARC Vertical Navigation (VNAV) Action Team
• RTCA Special Committee 227
• Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Certification Training
Program (CTP)
• Revision to AC 120-71A Standard Operating
Procedures
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Administration
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Recommendation 7 – Guidance for Flightcrew
Procedures for Malfunctions.
Develop guidance for flightcrew strategies and
procedures to address malfunctions for which there
is no specific procedure.
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Administration
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Recommendation 7 – Guidance for Flightcrew
Procedures for Malfunctions: Implementation
Status
• MITRE research
• Guidance to be developed under the ACT ARC –
timeline TBD
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Administration
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Recommendation 8 – Design of Flightcrew
Procedures.
For the near term, update
guidance (e.g., Advisory
Circular (AC) 120-71A) and develop recommended
practices for design of SOPs based on manufacturer
procedures, continuous feedback from operational experience,
and lessons learned.
This guidance should be updated to reflect operational
experience and research findings on a recurring basis.
For the longer term, conduct research to
understand and address when and why SOPs are not followed.
The activities should place particular emphasis on monitoring,
cross verification, and appropriate allocation of tasks between
pilot flying and pilot monitoring.
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Administration
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Recommendation 8 – Design of Flightcrew Procedures:
Implementation Status
Revision to AC 120-71A Standard Operating
Procedures for Flight Deck Crewmembers, revision
under development, publication late 2015.
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Administration
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Recommendation 9 - Operational Policy for
Flight Path Management.
Operators should have a clearly stated flight path management
policy as follows:
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•
•
•
•
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The policy should highlight and stress that the responsibility for flight path
management remains with the pilots at all times. Focus the policy on flight
path management, rather than automated systems.
Identify appropriate opportunities for manual flight operations.
Recognize the importance of automated systems as a tool (among other
tools) to support the flight path management task, and provide operational
policy for the use of automated systems.
Distinguish between guidance and control.
Encourage flightcrews to tell Air Traffic “unable” when appropriate.
Adapt to the operator’s needs and operations.
Develop consistent terminology for automated systems, guidance, control,
and other terms that form the foundation of the policy.
Develop guidance for development of policies for managing information
automation.
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Administration
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Recommendation 9 - Operational Policy for
Flight Path Management: Implementation Status
• ACT ARC – Flight Path Mgt WG
• Research to determine possible implementation of this
recommendation through other sources of FAA guidance.
• SAFO 13002 on Manual Flight operations. Published Jan. 2013
• Notice to Inspectors on Manual Flight Operations, Spring 2015
publication
• Updates to AIM will be drafted as necessary. Plan to engage
with Industry operations and training groups concerning
good practices.
• Updated 121.579 Minimum Altitudes for Use of Autopilot
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Administration
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Recommendation 13 - Pilot Training and
Qualification.
Revise initial and recurrent pilot training,
qualification requirements (as necessary) and
revise guidance for the development and
maintenance of improved knowledge and skills for
successful flight path management. As part of the
implementation of this recommendation, improve the
oversight of air carriers and Part 142 Training
Centers.
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Administration
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Recommendation 13 - Pilot Training and
Qualification: Implementation Status
• Guidance to be developed under the ACT
ARC - TBD
• Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Certification
Training Program (CTP). Guidance
Complete. Course required as a prerequisite
for taking the ATP knowledge test after Aug.
2014.
• MITRE research underway
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Administration
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Notes about Recommendations
• Recommendations are interdependent in
some cases
• Many of the recommendations support work
that is already underway
• No new rulemaking recommended
• Recommendations should be
communicated and implemented
/harmonized internationally
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Administration
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