Proceedings of the First Triservice Conference on Rotary-Wing Spatial Disorientation: Spatial Disorientation in the Operational Rotary-Wing Environment

This is a ARMY AEROMEDICAL RESEARCH LAB FORT RUCKER AL report procured by the Pentagon and made available for public release. It has been reproduced in the best form available to the Pentagon. It is not spiral-bound, but rather assembled with Velobinding in a soft, white linen cover. The Storming Media report number is A199423. The abstract provided by the Pentagon follows: Several recent studies at the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory (USAARL) and the U.S. Army Safety Center (USASC) have highlighted the significant contribution of Spatial Disorientation (SD) to helicopter accidents. In the U.S. Army the cost can be approximated at $58M and 14 lives each year. Following some local training initiatives by USAARL and the U.S. Army School of Aviation Medicine (USASAM), the first Triservice Symposium on Spatial Disorientation in Rotary-Wing Operations was held from 24 September 1996 through 26 September 1996 at USASAM. This symposium sought to address three main areas: (1) the seriousness of the SD hazard; (2) current methods to control the hazard; and (3) the associated safety and risk management concerns. This report contains the proceedings of the symposium. The symposium was considered to be a success in raising the awareness of the impact of SD on rotary-wing flying operations in the aeromedical and safety communities of the services. It was clear that SD imposes a particular hazard to rotary wing operations which differs in many respects to that experienced by fixed wing operators. There was unanimous agreement that initiatives to overcome the problem must be made. In order to maintain the impetus established by the symposium and secure funding for the various initiatives, the report contains a memorandum detailing the important factors and makes recommendations for future activity in the area. Work is required in education, training, research, and equipment procurement.