Lt. Col. Andrew Anderson

Director of Operations, Detachment 62, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command

Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Anderson is Director of Operations, Detachment 62, Headquarters Air Education and Training Command. In his current role, he supports AFWERX Agility Prime by accelerating the commercial and military adoption of electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle (eVTOL) technologies through curriculum development and training. He has over 3000 hours of flight experience in C-17A, MQ-1B and T-6A aircraft. He taught Undergraduate Pilot Training as a T-6A instructor and was a MQ-1B evaluator and instructor pilot. Lt. Col. Anderson is a 2005 graduate of the University of North Dakota and has a Master’s degree in Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautic University. Lt. Col. Anderson oversaw global RPA mission execution while Mission Director, Wing Operations Center at Creech AFB, NV; and served as Crisis Action Team Director at Laughlin AFB, TX, where he guided the base’s response through several contingency responses. He is a prior-enlisted Security Forces Journeyman and holds multiple civilian flight ratings, to include Commercial Pilot, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument and small Unmanned Aerial System operator.

Training a New Generation of Pilots: Open Issues in eVTOL Pilot Training

Although autopilot features have existed for decades, the level and types of automations seen in the ever-growing and diverse class of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) platforms are introducing some disruptive innovations that are creating widespread challenges across the industry. In this presentation Col Don ‘Stryker’ Haley and Dr. Kent Halverson will highlight some of the primary technical challenges in training the first cadre of eVTOL pilots. Three key challenges will be discussed from both an operational/pilot and scientific perspective related to pilot training. The first topic will explore the evolving role of pilots in this increasingly automated space. Traditionally, pilots were trained on to how to control or manage every system and subsystem of an aircraft, with special attention paid toward emergency procedures. However, eVTOLs are automating many of these tasks leading to decreased pilot cognitive workload, fewer task saturation situations, and better task prioritization. The second topic will explore how to measure pilot proficiency. Measuring “human” performance is less than straightforward in highly automated eVTOL platforms because it is not always obvious what aspects of flight are human-controlled versus machine-controlled. This leads to blurred lines between pilot evaluation and system evaluation. The pros and cons of subjective (i.e., expert ratings) compared to objective (i.e., data from the simulators and aircraft) will be discussed, as well as the potential application of physiological measures. Finally, the third topic will explore the development of an eVTOL curriculum. The eVTOL market is highly diverse with over 700 prototypes in development, each featuring unique combinations of propulsion systems, controls, and automation. This diversity makes developing a singular “eVTOL curriculum” highly improbable and poses a challenge for how curricula should be developed and how they can build on one another.