Under the weather: an evaluation of different modes of presenting meteorological information for pilots

Understanding current and forecast weather conditions for a planned route of flight is vital for general aviation (GA) pilots. Weather information can be obtained from multiple sources and in multiple formats, ranging from abbreviated code provided by aviation weather forecasters to animated graphical displays available on TV and the Internet. The present study investigated the effectiveness of graphical displays of meteorological information. A commercially available graphical display was ergonomically redesigned and the original and redesigned displays were compared with an ordinary text statement. Recall of information was significantly affected by display type. Comparisons showed the ergonomically redesigned display to be superior to the ordinary text statement. Performance was affected by participants' general level of familiarity with evaluating data displays as measured by their area of study (sciences or humanities). The generalizability of the results to the pilot population is discussed.