AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2019 - 95

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associated with the base-to-final turn.
Making such a turn when that sound is gone
could create confusion or concern, both of
which would invoke some level of sympathetic nervous system response.
In cloud penetration, pilots lose contextual stimuli such as sound; objects on the
ground, shadows, the horizon; and their
comfortable familiarity with the aeronautical environment.
All flight students have some experience
during training with illusions of flight, and
instrument pilots are subject to a particularly wide array of such illusions. Many
illusions are potentially deadly.
The majority of these illusions involve
either visual errors or somatosensory errors,
which are errors caused by the brain's misinterpretation of the stimuli it receives from
mechanisms in the inner ear that indicate
acceleration and gravity. The table below
describes several of these.
Experiencing an in-flight illusion is not
stressful because, while being fooled by our
brains and often our ears, we usually don't
perceive that anything is wrong. The major
stressor that can throw us for a loop (sorry)
is when we realize that there is a disconnect
between what we think the airplane is doing

and what it actually is doing-when we realize that we have been fooled.
For an unprepared, undertrained pilot,
the associated startle response and feelings
of loss of control can render us virtually
useless to handle the airplane, and the consequences can be dire.

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INTENSIFICATION OF ADVERSE
PSYCHOLOGICAL REACTIONS

The level of sympathetic activation depends
on how severe the stressor appears to be.
Turn base to final a moment earlier than you
intended to? Minor stressor, minor sympathetic nervous system activation. Enter a
graveyard spiral at high speed with screaming passengers and no visual reference to
assist with recovery? Major stressor, major
sympathetic nervous system activation.
We enter the realm of intensifying levels of
activation and plummeting levels of pilot
competence.
In addition to the bodily responses to
stressors are the cognitive (thinking) and
affective (feeling) responses we can experience with cloud penetration or other status
changes. The cognitive effects of cloud
penetration, particularly in the inexperienced pilot, can include feelings of doom,

AIRCRAFT EFFECT

SPEED

POWER

CORIOLIS ILLUSION

A constant turn ceases to
feel like a turn.

Airplane is still turning.

ELEVATOR ILLUSION

An updraft feels like the
nose has been tilted
upward.

Airplane is still level.

GRAVEYARD SPIRAL

A constant spiral ceases
to feel like a spiral.

Airplane is still in a spiral.

INVERSION ILLUSION

A fast pitch-down feels
like a backward flip.

Airplane is nosing down.

THE LEANS

A very slowly entered,
banked turn feels like
there is no turn.

Airplane is in a turn.

SOMATOGRAVIC
ILLUSION

Forward acceleration
feels like the airplane is
climbing.

Airplane is not climbing.

SOMATOGYRIC
ILLUSION

A roll back to straight
and level feels like the
airplane is rolling in the
opposite direction.

Airplane is not rolling.

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AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2019
