Design of a VR application for pilots as a complementary tool for procedure training of Abnormal Operations

Abstract

The aviation industry has been amongst the early adopters of VR for educational purposes, even since the very beginning of VR’s technology establishment and throughout its further development. Flight simulators are invaluable as they let pilots and instructors replicate any situation for learning full control over the plane and improve situational awareness without paying the price of life-safety if using an actual aircraft. Abnormal operations and their procedures are a key subject of safety training, where pilots have to understand and memorize particular orders of actions in order to solve a dangerous situation on board. A typical flight simulator emulating a pilot's cockpit might reach the price of 4.5 million $ or more. This Master’s thesis investigates the feasibility of implementing a procedure trainer of abnormal operations for commercial pilots as a complement using low-cost VR equipment such as the Oculus Quest 2 with the Airbus A320neo cockpit as a reference. The virtual learning environment has been developed in cooperation with Applica Training Systems AS and been tested on pilots and pilots’ training manager for its usefulness, acceptance, and usability