Tiziano Bernard

Title
Adjunct Faculty, College of Arts and Sciences
Email
Department
Dept of Human Factors, Safety and Social Sciences
College
College of Arts & Sciences

Office Hours

As needed via email: tiziano.bernard@erau.edu

Areas of Expertise

Flight Test, Cognitive Engineering, Human-Centered Design, Usability, Avionics
Tiziano Bernard

Dr. Tiziano "Tizi" Bernard is a Professor of Human Factors, an experimental flight test engineer, and pilot. Born and raised in Trieste, Italy, he graduated from the International School of Trieste before moving to the United States to study at Florida Tech. A graduate student of Dr. Ralph D. Kimberlin, he earned an M.S. in Flight Test Engineering working on aircraft stability and control. He earned his Ph.D. studying human cognition from the Human-Centered Design Institute (HCDi) under Dr. Lucas Stephane.

At Florida Tech, Dr. Bernard spent several years researching systems-induced loss of control (LOC), flight-testing causal factors, developing new cognitive engineering methods and designing experimental recovery avionics for large Part 25 aircraft.

Outside of academia, Dr. Bernard is an experimental flight test engineer flying on Gulfstream GVII and GVIII test aircraft. He is also an FAA Flight Instructor with over 1,300 instruction hours and a Director with the Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE). Previously, he worked as an avionics designer and evaluator for GARMIN, designing integrated, aftermarket and experimental cockpits—primarily focusing on large-cabin flight decks and life-critical systems. He is the inventor of two patents and continues to contribute to the aerospace field as a lecturer, instructor, volunteer pilot and mentor (e.g., Project Lead the Way).

In recognition of his dedication to the sciences, Dr. Bernard was awarded the Order of Merit of Savoy (Royal House of Italy), the Bronzean Medal of the City of Trieste and was elected to the Forbes Italy “Under 30” list in 2019. In 2025, he was awarded Best National Flight Instructor by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA).

  • Ph.D. - Doctor of Philosophy in Human-Centered Design, Florida Institute of Technology
  • M.S. - Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering, Florida Institute of Technology
  • Graduate Certificate in Flight Test Evaluation, Florida Institute of Technology
  • B.S. - Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering: Flight Technology, Florida Institute of Technology
  • Training Center Instructor - CIRRUS Aircraft Training Center
  • Flight Instructor - Federal Aviation Administration
  • Commercial Pilot - Federal Aviation Administration
  • Ground Instructor - Federal Aviation Administration
  • Remote Pilot - Federal Aviation Administration
  • MSHF 653: Cognitive Systems Engineering
  • MSHF 618: HF in Virtual and Sim Environ
  • MSHF 606: Human Cognition
  • MSHF 641: Systems Psychology

MSHF606 - Human Cognition

MSHF618 - Human Factors in Virtual and Simulated Environments

MSHF641 - Systems Psychology

MSHF647 - Human Factors in Complex Systems

MSHF652 - Crew Platform & Control Room Operational Interface Automation, Design, and Integration

MSHF653 - Cognitive Systems Engineering

MSHF700A - MSHF Thesis I

MSHF700B - MSHF Thesis II

2024

  • Bernard, T., Wilt, D. (2024) HCI in General Aviation. Chapter in Human Computer Interaction: HCI Application Domains (ed. Carroll, M.), CRC Press

2023

  • Bernard, T. et al. (2023) Role of AI in weather prediction, flight planning, route optimization and scheduling, Ethical considerations and potential impacts of human-machine interaction in aviation, Automation Framework for human decision making and key uses of AI for cognitive information processing. Chapters in Implementation Guide for Artificial Intelligence in Aviation. D. Ziakkas & L. Vink (Ed.). 
  • Ramazzotti, A., Bernard, T., Callaway, C. (2023) Perspectives on the Evolution of the Flight Test Profession: Stories from Avionics and Propulsion Experimental Flight Testing. Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE) European Annual Symposium. Rome, Italy

2022

  • Bernard, T., Kiefert, J., De La Barcena, A. (2022) Premature Descent Alerting: Experimental Flight Test Execution of an Enhanced TAWS Feature on G700/800 Aircraft. Society of Experimental Test Pilots Annual Symposium. Anaheim, CA

2020

  • Bernard, T., Tuccio, W.A., Wittenborn, G., Scheel, B., Sargent, E., Hewes, J., Litherland, W. (2020) Garmin Autoland: Simulator and Flight Testing of an Emergency Autonomous Landing System. Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE) International Symposium. St. Louis, MO
  • Bernard, T., Tuccio, W.A., Boulnois, S., Tasic, A., Stephane, L. (2020) An Approach to Aerospace Design Integrating Crew Resource Management in Operational Environments. Applied Human Factors & Ergonomics (AHFE) International Conference, San Diego, CA

2019

  • Bernard, T., Cuffie, B., Boulnois, S., Mehta, Y., Rayad, Y., Stephane, L. (2019) Considerations on Passenger Experience for Space Tourism. Applied Human Factors & Ergonomics (AHFE) International Conference, Washington D.C.

2018

  • Bernard, T. (2018) On the Complexity of Loss of Control in Aviation. Applied Human Factors & Ergonomics (AHFE) International Conference, Orlando, Florida

2016

  • Kasdaglis, N., Bernard, T., Stephane, L., Boy, G.A. (2016) Affordant Guidance for In-Flight Loss of Control: The Trajectory Recovery System (TRS). Conference Proceedings of HCI-Aero 2016, Paris, France

Experimental Flight Test Engineer, Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation

Certified Flight Instructor, Savannah Aviation

Director, Society of Flight Test Engineers (SFTE)

Aviation Systems & Human Factors Engineer, GARMIN International

Cognitive Engineering Research Engineer, Human-Centered Design Institute

Flight Test Engineer, Human-Centered Design Institute

Director, Society of Flight Test Engineers

Sr. Member, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Fellow, European Academy for Economic and Cultural Relations

Member, National Association of Flight Instructors

Member, Society of Aviation and Flight Educators

100 under 30, FORBES Italy

Best National Flight Instructor, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association

Best Regional Flight Instructor (Southern), Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association

Visionary Educator, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Gold Seal Flight Instructor, Federal Aviation Administration

Innovation Award, GARMIN International

Best Paper Award, SFTE 2020 International Conference

Officer, Order of Merit of Savoy

Bronzean Medal of the City of Trieste, Government of Trieste, Italy

Best University Project, Thales

Northrop Grumman Best Engineering Project Award, Florida Tech Capstone Project