Performance, Emotion, Presence: Investigation of an Augmented Reality-Supported Concept for Flight Training

Augmented reality (AR) could be a means for a more sustainable education of the next generation of pilots. This study aims to assess an AR-supported training concept for approach to landing, which is the riskiest phase of flying an aircraft and the most difficult to learn. The evaluation was conducted with 59 participants (28 women and 31 men) in a pretest–post-test control group design. No significant effect of the AR-supported training was observed when comparing the experimental and the control groups. However, the results show that for the experimental group that trained with AR, higher performance in post-test was associated with higher AR presence and comfort with AR during training. Although both gender groups improved their approach quality after training, the improvement was larger in women as compared to men. Trainees’ workload, fear of failure, and negative emotions decreased in post-test as compared to pre-test, but the decrease was significantly larger in women than in men. The experimental group who used AR support during training showed improved performance despite the absence of AR support in post-test. However, the AR-based training concept had a similar effect to conventional simulator training. Although more research is necessary to explore the training opportunities in AR and mixed reality, the results of this study indicate that such an application would be beneficial to bridge the gap between theoretical and practical instruction.