Heart Rate Variability During Long-Term Air Traffic Control in Cadets

The aim of this study is to determine the readiness of air defense cadets for inherently stressful long-term air traffic control (ATC). Although the origin of stress is psychological, it affects physiological functions like heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV). HR and HRV data were obtained from four air traffic controllers (ATCs) recording the data over a course of 4 hours. The task of the ATCs was to record information about a flight code, duration of the flight in the border zone, as well as information whether the aircraft was flying in or out of the Czech Republic's airspace. The results showed statistically significant interindividual differences in the observed HRV variables during low and high workload. The results can help evaluate the stress and readiness of cadets/operators of complex systems in air defense.