Finding new Navy UAS pilots

ARLINGTON, Va. - Georgia Tech and the Pensacola, Fla.-based Naval Aerospace Medical Institute are sponsoring the development of a series of new specialized tests to assess cognitive abilities and personality traits for identifying potential Navy and Marine Corps unmanned aviation systems (UAS) operators. It's called the Selection for UAS Personnel (SUPer). Some 350 civilian and military volunteers are participating as SUPer research subjects with Dr. Phillip Ackerman, a Georgia Tech psychology professor overseeing SUPer's development. By the end of September, Ackerman’s research team will review test results, and begin designing a standardized exam for validation by prospective UAS pilots. They are striving to have a product that is fleet ready in 2018. "SUPer will define and assess the knowledge, skills and abilities required to be a successful UAS operator,” said Lt. Cmdr. Tatana Olson, deputy director of the Naval Aerospace Medical Research Laboratory in Dayton, Ohio, “and, ultimately, optimize naval use of human resources for unmanned aviation." (Source: Office of Naval Research 08/31/17) Lt. Cmdr. Olson is an aerospace experimental psychologist and former department head for operational psychology at the Navy Medicine Operational Training Center in Pensacola. In May, she was awarded the Heroes of Military Medicine Award. HMM awards honor outstanding contributions by individuals who have distinguished themselves through excellence and selfless dedication to advancing military medicine.