AQT AQT Aviation Medical & Human Factors 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary cause of vertigo (spatial disorientation) in IMC flight?
- Visual overload
- Conflict between vestibular and visual cues (Correct answer)
- Excessive G-forces
- Cockpit heat
Correct answer: Conflict between vestibular and visual cues
Spatial disorientation in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) occurs when vestibular (inner ear) sensations conflict with cockpit instrument indications.
Question 2: What does the Coriolis illusion cause a pilot to perceive?
- False bank during a prolonged straight flight
- Tumbling or rolling sensation when moving the head during a sustained turn (Correct answer)
- False climb during acceleration
- Level flight when actually descending
Correct answer: Tumbling or rolling sensation when moving the head during a sustained turn
The Coriolis illusion arises when a pilot moves their head during a prolonged turn, overstimulating the semicircular canals and creating a tumbling sensation.
Question 3: What is the maximum blood alcohol concentration (BAC) allowed for military aviators before flight?
- 0.04%
- 0.00% (completely sober) (Correct answer)
- 0.08%
- 0.02%
Correct answer: 0.00% (completely sober)
Military aviation regulations prohibit any detectable alcohol in a pilot's system, requiring complete sobriety before flight.
Question 4: What is the 'graveyard spiral' and what causes it?
- A stall caused by flying too slowly in a spiral
- A progressively steepening spiral dive caused by spatial disorientation (Correct answer)
- A spin entered from a graveyard altitude
- An unrecoverable dive caused by structural failure
Correct answer: A progressively steepening spiral dive caused by spatial disorientation
The graveyard spiral is a progressively tightening spiral dive that develops when a pilot, disoriented in a bank, pulls back instead of rolling wings-level.
Question 5: What physiological effect does hyperventilation commonly cause in pilots?
- Decreased carbon dioxide causing lightheadedness and tingling (Correct answer)
- Increased oxygen causing euphoria
- Decreased oxygen causing hypoxia
- Increased nitrogen causing narcosis
Correct answer: Decreased carbon dioxide causing lightheadedness and tingling
Hyperventilation causes excessive carbon dioxide to be expelled, lowering blood CO₂ levels and producing symptoms like lightheadedness, tingling, and impaired judgment.
Question 6: What is 'channelized attention' in aviation human factors?
- Focused communication on a single radio channel
- Fixation on one task or instrument while neglecting others (Correct answer)
- Dividing attention equally among all instruments
- A training technique for improving situational awareness
Correct answer: Fixation on one task or instrument while neglecting others
Channelized attention (or fixation) occurs when a pilot focuses exclusively on one stimulus and fails to monitor other critical flight parameters.
AQT AQT Aviation Medical & Human Factors 2
What is the primary cause of vertigo (spatial disorientation) in IMC flight?