Evaluation of the Pilot's Mental Workload during a Real Flight Based on Heart Rate Measurement with a Smartwatch

Piloting an aircraft is a complex task that places demands on various aspects of a pilot's cognitive abilities. This paper presents the results of an experiment designed to evaluate a pilot's mental workload while operating a recreational aircraft using commercially available wearable electronics in a real flight environment. The motivation behind this experiment lies in the utilization of psychophysiological measures in specialized applications aimed at enhancing the efficiency of the pilot training process. The conducted experiment primarily focused on monitoring heart rate as an indicator of the pilot's mental workload level. This indicator was chosen due to its widespread availability in commercially available wearable electronics. Four pilots with varying levels of flight experience performed identical flights involving tasks designed to gradually increase their workload. The results show that the pilot's recorded heart rate increased as expected, especially in student pilots. When compared to the subjective rating, it correlated only in half of the cases.