AN EVALUATION OF THE BRITISH-ARMY SPATIAL DISORIENTATION SORTIE IN US-ARMY AVIATION

Background: Following didactic instruction, most aircrew are able to e xperience some of the disorienting illusions and limitations of the or ientation senses in a variety of ground-based devices. In order to rei nforce instruction in spatial disorientation (SD) within the environme nt in which they operate, British Army Air Corps helicopter pilots als o receive an airborne demonstration of the limitations of their orient ation senses prior to rotary-wing instrument flight training. The obje ctive of this assessment was to determine whether the SD demonstration sortie would be an effective adjunct in training aircrew in SD in the U.S. Army. Methods: There were 45 aviators and training personnel who experienced the sortie and gave their opinion in questionnaires. Resu lts: The following conclusions were made: the maneuvers performed in t he SD demonstration sortie, and the sortie overall, were extremely eff ective at demonstrating the limitations of the orientation senses; the SD sortie attracted a significantly higher rating in its effectivenes s to train aviators in SD than all the currently available methods; th e introduction of the sortie into the initial flight training syllabus would be a distinct enhancement to the SD training of aviators and as sociated personnel; and the introduction of the sortie into refresher training in field units would also be an advantage. Conclusion: Other services are encouraged to consider this enhancement to the SD trainin g of aviators.