Operator modeling in civil aviation

A model of the pilot-flying and the pilot-not-flying operation of a Boeing 727 aircraft is described. The modeling methodology is the operator function model (OFM), a prescriptive model that specifies nondeterministically a set of plausible operator functions and related activities given current system state and recent operator actions. As such, it provides two necessary components of a computer-based assistant: (1) the structure to represent knowledge about the system and operator activities; and (2) a mechanism to define expectations of operator activities given current system state. The model is the first step in the development of a computer-based intent inferencer, a prerequisite to an intelligent pilot aid. Using the OFM methodology, the activities of the flight crew of a normal flight segment from cruise to touchdown are presented