Measuring the Lookout Behavior of Student Pilots in a Virtual Reality Flight Simulator

Learning adequate gaze behavior is essential in flight training. In this exploratory study we investigated the development of gaze behavior in flight training in a virtual reality (VR) flight simulator. Following standardized study material, fifteen participants without flying experience repeatedly practiced three basic flight maneuvers in a VR simulator of a small aircraft. During some runs, participants performed an additional N-back task to measure cognitive spare capacity. From the recorded gaze data we computed the percentage of time during which the gaze was directed outside the cockpit, i.e., the “Lookout”. This outside dwell ratio differed between flight maneuvers. A higher outside dwell ratio was associated with better flight performance. Remarkably, the outside dwell ratio increased with the additional N-back task. A heatmap indicated staring behavior during the N-back. In a follow-up study we will extend the analysis of gaze behavior with more dynamic measures than only the dwell ratio.