Arriving Flights

Synonyms / Other Terms Used

Flight Arrivals, Arrivals, Arrival

Category

Transportation, Transport Facilities, Travel, Tourism

Message / Function

To indicate the location of flight arrivals

	Source	Description
	PORT	Plan view of aircraft pointing downwards
	Zurich Airport	Side view of aircraft descending, three dots indicating landing gear
	D/FW	Side view of aircraft descending, three dots indicating landing gear
A)	Dreyfuss	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, arrow pointing downwards
	O'72	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, three dots indicating landing gear
	Picto'grafics	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, three dots indicating landing gear
	TC	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, three dots indicating landing gear
	Düsseldorf Airport	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, two dots indicating landing gear
	ADV	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, two dots indicating landing gear
	Eco-Mo Foundation	Side view of aircraft approaching runway, dot indicating landing gear
	EJP	View of aircraft approaching runway
	PANYNJ	View of aircraft approaching runway, dot indicating landing gear
	AJATA	View of aircraft approaching runway, dot indicating landing gear
	ICAO	View of aircraft approaching runway, landing gear indicated
	ISO 7001	Side view of aircraft landing on runway, three dots indicating landing gear
	Icograda	Arc indicating descent ending at side view of aircraft above runway
	FA	Plan view of aircraft within box facing inside
	Icograda	Plan view of aircraft entering box
	Icograda	Side view of aircraft entering circular enclosure
	Icograda	Airplane pointing towards area between two horizontal lines
	Icograda	Frontal view of aircraft with landing gear visible, inside circle in outline
	ATA	Plan view of aircraft, arrow pointing away from aircraft
	Icograda	Side view of descending airplane, clipped human figure below
B)	Icograda	Plan view of descending airplane, person walking away
C)	AF	Person with case walking away from airplane on runway
	AIGA	Passenger with suitcase and up-raised arm
	Icograda	Side view of two human figures, one with suitcase, two horizontal lines between
	Icograda	Side view of two human figures approaching each other, arms almost touching
	Icograda	Flexed arrow pointing towards horizontal bar at bottom
	Icograda	Horizontal arrow pointing towards filled circle

Note: Some of the examples shown above were mirrored horizontally to contrast differences.

Discussion

The range of pictograms shown in the table above gives a good hint of the image contents used to indicate the location of flight arrivals. Quite common are pictograms displaying a side view of a descending aircraft, often showing several dots below indicating the landing gear. Some pictograms also display a horizontal line below as representation of the runway. Most of the remaining concepts are test designs from an Icograda student project (Frascara, 1979) and never were in use in an airport. We did not include several very abstract variants and some of the graphical symbols very similar to renderings used to indicate a Meeting Point.

Studies from several countries present research covering most concepts found in pictogram variants for this referent:

In the ISO 1979/80 test series (Easterby & Graydon 1981) a selection of eight pictogram variants regarding the referent Arrival were examined using an Appropriateness Ranking Test (Easterby & Graydon 1981 a). The three pictogram variants marked A) to C) in the table above were selected for further research and tested for comprehensibility (Easterby & Graydon 1981 b). None reached an acceptable percentage of correct responses: applying lenient scoring the variant found in the Symbol Sourcebook by Dreyfuss, marked with A) performed best with 41.3 % of the responses classified as correct, compared to 30.1 % and 20.9 % for the pictograms marked B) and C). As the message in these tests was not restricted to flight arrivals, also the assignment to available categories was not perfect. Regarding this and the additional fact, that no context information was offered, the results of that study should be interpreted with care.

Also in a Japanese study to propose domestically unified graphical symbols based on scientific methods, the pictogram variant tested did not elicit a sufficient percentage of correct answers. The comprehension score for the pictogram labeled as Eco-Mo Foundation was only 22.5 (Eco-Mo Foundation, 2001).

The authors of the Symbol Signs study (AIGA, 1993) discuss several issues concerning this referent:

The visual concept of an aircraft pointing downwards, especially the old variants marked PORT and Dreyfuss, may make the impression of crashing, also because a landing aircraft does not point downwards.
Most people seeking Arrivals go there to meet or pick up an incoming passenger, something not perfectly corresponding to the message of many pictograms. Therefore it was recommended to change the referent to 'Passenger Pick-Up'.

A study by Zwaga & Poppinga offers another insight of problems concerning the message: while most respondents were able to describe all elements of a variant similar to the version from the Eco-Mo Foundation, only 51 % responded correctly concerning the meaning of this symbol.

Another aspect should be regarded: A simplified plan view of an airplane similar to the variant marked PORT is used to indicate the location of an airport; accordingly, a plan view of an airplane alone should not be used to signify something else.

Recommendation

Regarding research results available we recommend using a pictogram similar to public information symbol PI TF 016: Flight Arrivals from ISO 7001.

Tests of pictograms of referent Arrivals / Arriving Flights

Easterby, R.S. & Graydon, I.R. (1981 a): Evaluation of Public Information Symbols: ISO Test: 1979/80 Series. Part I: Appropriateness Ranking Tests. AP Report 99, Applied Psychology Department, University of Aston in Birmingham, January 1981.

Easterby, R.S. & Graydon, I.R. (1981 b): Evaluation of Public Information Symbols: ISO 1979/80 Test Series. Part II: Comprehension/Recognition Tests. AP Report 100, Applied Psychology Department, University of Aston in Birmingham, January 1981.

Eco-Mo Foundation (2001): Test data of public information symbols in Japan - Procedure for the testing of public information symbols by the Study Committee. ISO: ISO/TC 145/SC 1 N 329.

Zwaga, H.J.G. & Poppinga, J.: Identification and Legibility of Graphic Symbols; Towards a standard for public information symbols. Internal Report, Psychological Laboratory, University of Utrecht