VARIATIONS IN "PARTY LINE" INFORMATION IMPORTANCE BETWEEN PILOTS OF DIFFERENCE CHARACTERISTICS

VARIATIONS IN "PARTY LINE" INFORMATION IMPORTANCE BETWEEN PILOTS OFDIFFERENCE CHARACTERISTICSAmy R. PritchettR. John HansmaliAeronautical Systems Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyABSTRACTThe introduction of digital datalink communications into the ATC may cause a reduction of thesituation awareness of Flight Crews due to the reduction of"Party Line" Information (PLI) thatcan beoverheard on the shared voice frequencies. A survey was distributed to determine cunent PLI use by pilotsfrom different geographic regions, operational groups, experience levels and ahumft equipage. Pilotsindicated highest perceived imporlance for PLI during the phases of flight nearest the airport and lowestimportance during Cruise. Several specific traffic and weather information dements were identified asparticularly important; traffic and weather information was also cited by pilots as information required forglobal situation awareness. Some variations in responses were found between pilots from different