Psychological and psychophysiological features of unmanned combat aircrafts operators’ activity

Combat operations in Syria, Libya and Nagorny Karabakh showed that one the crucial combat means providing success in local military operations are remotely-piloted aerial vehicles (unmanned aircrafts, drones). Having high combat properties they tackle a wide range of combat tasks. Effectiveness of using remotely-piloted aerial vehicles primarily depends on «human factor », real psychological and psychophysiological qualities of people who operate them. Activity of remotely-piloted aerial vehicles’ operators is distinguished by psychological and psychophysiological characteristics which reflect, on the one hand, the specifics of operating activity and, on the other hand, the specifics of the activity with intensive moral, value aspects and high risk of specialists’ psychotraumatization. Due to the abrupt increase of combat status of remotely-piloted aerial vehicles new military specialties related to operation of this equipment have recently been widely used and the number of such specialists has increased. However, the integral perception of psychological and psychophysiological elements of the work performed by these specialists has not been formed yet. The objective was to clarify psychological and psychophysiological peculiarities of military specialists’ work on operating remotely-piloted aerial vehicles. Маterials and Methods. The authors analyzed psychological literature, Internet-resources which set forth theoretical foundations of psychophysiological peculiarities of operator’s work and techniques related to operation of remotely-piloted aerial vehicles. Methods of analogy, formal and dialectical logics, comparative method were employed. Results and Discussion. The role of remotely-piloted combat aerial warfare in modern wars, their functions and classification are revealed. General description of the profession of remotely-piloted aerial vehicles’ operator is given. The paper considers psychological and psychophysiological peculiarities of the operator’s work, the types of his actions. Professionally important qualities of an operator, psychological consequences of combat tasks performed by remotely-piloted aerial vehicles’ operators are under discussion. The authors formulate the tasks to improve effectiveness of the operators’ activity. Conclusions. Combat activity of remotely-piloted aerial vehicles’ operators sets up the requirements to their psychological and psychophysiological qualities such as responsibility, restraint, observation, focus on details, resistance to stress, resistance to different distracting irritants and environmental factors, ability to perform under «sensory impoverishment» for a long time, developed properties of attention, quick reaction capability, quick decision-making, special endurance etc.