Pilots' awareness is revealed by the way their gaze moves across the cockpit. Psychologists at BAE Systems, the aerospace giant, have devised ways of tracking eye movement and combining the measurements with other vital signs to measure how well the pilot and flight crew are coping.
A modern flight deck makes great use of visual displays, which crews need to handle as effectively as possible. When human error causes accidents, two significant factors are a crew's lack of awareness of what is going on and a breakdown in their teamwork.
By recording the crew's eye movements, the psychologists can decide at what point during a flight the crew become confused or ill at ease with what they see.
This could be vital information during an emergency, when crew need to make split-second decisions on the basis of instrument displays.
"We are trying to model situational awareness of pilots by measuring eye movements and combining this with other vital signs, such as heart rate," explains Dr Catherine Neary, a senior scientist at BAE Systems' Advanced Technology Centre in Bristol, England. "Software then maps the eye movements onto the scene in a computer model."
"Situational awareness" is psychologists' jargon for knowing what's going on so you can work out what to do.
Eye movements are a giveaway, because they show chaotic patterns of movement when a subject is confused and looking for information. More ordered patterns show the individual is comfortable and handling a situation.
Tests using teams of experienced commercial pilots are carried out in a flight-deck simulator at the centre's laboratories.
Using a cyborg-style headset fitted with video cameras and motion sensors, the psychologists track their subjects' head and eye movements, as well as measuring their pupil diameters and blink rates, logging the pilots' "point of gaze" on areas of the flight deck.
By incorporating information about the pilots' heart rates and body language, the psychologists can then judge if the pilots are under pressure or confused.
The information provided by Neary and her team should help improve pilot training and the capability of flight crews, as well as leading to better cockpit design.
"We're convinced that this work will bring benefits to the crew, who will be better trained as a result, and to designers, who will be able to make use of detailed knowledge about pilot effectiveness and situational awareness.
"The mainstay of the work is for crew training in simulators but, long-term, the techniques could be used for crew monitoring while flying," says Neary.
Aircrews are just one group set to benefit from this style of people-watching. The same methods can be used for any job involving teamwork with machines, where people have to rely on what they see and on each other.
"We are broadening the domain beyond aerospace to other team activities, such as hospital anaesthesia," says Neary.
A study is under way in an anaesthesia simulator, using a team in a Copenhagen hospital.
It is part of an EU research programme that encourages Europe's aerospace companies to bring the benefits of their technology to other sectors.
Eye-tracking technology can also benefit people severely disabled by paralysis. The headsets can be used to control modified household equipment, such as lights, televisions and kitchen appliances, just by looking at them.
Dr Peter Foote is a research scientist with BAE Systems in Bristol. He is participating in the Media Fellow programme run by the British Association for the Advancement of Science