Landing signal officers (LSOs) have the critical responsibility of providing timely and accurate feedback to pilots in order to avoid a catastrophe. These personnel must track pilot performances, calculate real-time grade-point averages and boarding rates, and make quick decisions on students’ abilities—all of which is currently recorded by hand.
With the Improved Performance Assessment and Readiness Training System (IPARTS), LSOs no longer have to record data by hand. The system improves workflows by automating repetitive and time-consuming tasks. It includes three key components:
- A rugged data collection handheld tablet computer for use on the flight deck
- A shipboard system with local data, trend analysis, training and review tools
- A fully accessible central Oracle database to store pilot performance records from all aircraft carriers and practice landing fields
The tool also provides LSOs with greater accuracy in tracking and enhanced analysis capabilities to more precisely determine if a student is ready to progress. Data collected from across the fleet is archived to a centralized server, providing decision makers with a realistic picture of carrier aviation readiness.
“Most importantly,” says Stephanie Everrett, TechSolutions program manager, “IPARTS supports the safety of pilots and aircraft.”
The IPARTS working prototype was developed for the Office of Naval Reaserch (ONR) TechSolutions by the Naval Postgraduate School’s MOVES Institute.
ONR TechSolutions links warfighters to the government science and technology community to help develop needed technologies as quickly as possible. Their goal is to have a solution prototype in the hands of a requesting Sailor or Marine within 12-18 months. Sailors and Marines are encouraged to submit requests via the TechSolutions website at https://www.onr.navy.mil/techsolutions (no account needed).