Operational information management is at a crossroads as it sheds the remaining vestiges of its paper-based processes and moves through the uncharted domain of electronic data processes. The final outcome is not yet in full focus, but real progress has been made in the transition to electronic documents providing the aviation industry with a clear direction. This book looks at a combination of industry initiatives and airline successes that point to the next steps that operators can take as they transition to fully integrated information management systems. Although the route has not been fully identified, it is evident that a key to successful long-term efficient information management is industry-wide cooperation. The chapters are authored by a range of experts in operational information management, and collectively, they outline ways that operators can improve efficiency across flight, ground and maintenance operations. Considerations and recommendations are identified and presented addressing the following priorities: Safety-critical information and procedures Human factors Information security Operational information standardization. The readership includes: Airline flight operations managers and standards personnel, Airline operating documents and publication specialists, Airline information managers, Commercial pilots, Airline maintenance managers and personnel, Manufacturers and vendors of aviation products, Aviation regulators and policy makers, Aviation researchers and developers of information technologies, and Military technical publications specialists.
Thomas L. Seamster is Senior Research Scientist at Cognitive & Human Factors, Santa Fe, USA. He has directed research in aviation human factors of air traffic control, crew systems and crew training with special interest in human expertise in computer programming, flight crew resource management assessment and spacecraft control. On the applied side, he has developed and tested user interfaces for both military and commercial systems and has developed expert and intelligent tutoring systems for the aerospace community. Recently, Dr. Seamster has conducted research in airline operating documents and, with Dr. Kanki, has co-chaired the NASA/FAA Operating Documents Group. He is co-author, with Drs. Kaempf and Redding, of Applied Cognitive Task Analysis in Aviation, Ashgate, 1997. Barbara G. Kanki is a Research Psychologist at NASA Ames Research Center with a Ph.D. in Behavioural Sciences from the University of Chicago. She has conducted crew factors research in both aviation and space systems; from flight crew communications and Crew Resource Management, to crew issues in ATC, maintenance and space shuttle processing. Customer collaborators include NASA, the FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board, as well as airline, military, manufacturer and union organizations. She manages human factors research under several NASA safety programs, and has conducted FAA-sponsored research in airline operating documents. With Dr. Seamster, she co-chairs the NASA/FAA Operating Documents Group and was co-editor with Drs. Wiener and Helmreich, of Cockpit Resource Management, Academic Press, 1993.
