The journal adopts an interdisciplinary scope, welcoming studies that examine issues related to aviation, military, educational and training environments from multiple perspectives. It does not seek merely to collect separate topics under one heading, but to build an integrated field of knowledge connecting disciplines that contribute to understanding and developing aviation, training, safety and institutional readiness. Its publication fields are set out below.
Aims and scope
Aims of the journal
Sultan Qaboos Air Academy Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies seeks to achieve the following scholarly and editorial objectives, consistent with its interdisciplinary nature and academic mission.
Support interdisciplinary research
Encourage studies that cross traditional disciplinary boundaries and connect knowledge and methods across aviation, training, safety, strategic studies, information science, media and communication, artificial intelligence, leadership, education and knowledge management. The journal provides a scholarly space for research addressing contemporary issues as complex questions that cannot be understood from a single disciplinary perspective and therefore require multiple theories and methods, offering a deeper understanding of scientific and professional problems within its scope.
Advance knowledge in aviation, training and safety
Support rigorous research into flight training, workforce preparation, simulation, performance assessment, aviation safety, risk management, accident analysis, safety culture, institutional readiness, and the human and organisational factors affecting aviation and training environments. This work combines scholarly and practical perspectives to improve training practices and safety systems and strengthen performance in aviation, educational and training institutions.
Support strategic, information and media studies related to aviation and aviation institutions
Encourage research connecting aviation with strategic studies, aviation institutions with information and knowledge management, and media with institutional and strategic communication. This includes crisis communication, military media, reputation management, institutional image, countering misinformation, knowledge sovereignty, information security and information flows in sensitive environments, strengthening understanding of the strategic, information and media dimensions of aviation, training and safety.
Support artificial intelligence and emerging technologies within the journal’s scope
Attract studies of artificial intelligence, data analysis, intelligent systems, simulation, virtual and augmented reality, advanced communications and digital transformation in aviation, training, safety, management, media and decision-making. The journal’s interest extends beyond technical aspects to the ethical, organisational and human dimensions of these technologies, supporting their responsible and effective use in developing knowledge and institutional practice.
Strengthen the quality of peer-reviewed scholarly publishing
Publish studies meeting standards of originality, sound methodology, theoretical clarity, coherent analysis and scholarly or practical value. The journal promotes a rigorous publishing environment founded on double-anonymous peer review, publication ethics, conflict-of-interest disclosure, respect for authors’ rights, data integrity and editorial transparency, reinforcing confidence in its research and its standing as a peer-reviewed platform for interdisciplinary studies.
Strengthen the scholarly standing and institutional identity of Sultan Qaboos Air Academy
Strengthen the scholarly standing and institutional identity of Sultan Qaboos Air Academy as a home for interdisciplinary knowledge in aviation, training, safety and modern technologies, supporting its role in producing strategic thought and keeping pace with contemporary developments in knowledge.
Scope and publication fields
Aviation and flight training
This field examines aviation as a scientific and applied discipline directly connected with preparing aviation professionals and developing professional performance. It includes flight training, pilot preparation, competency development, simulation, performance assessment, training programme design, scenario-based and outcomes-based training, and factors affecting educational and training quality in aviation environments. These studies help improve training effectiveness and trainee readiness and align training with the requirements of performance, safety and air operations.
Aeronautical and aerospace engineering and related technologies
This field focuses on the engineering and technological foundations of aviation and aerospace systems. It includes aeronautical engineering, aerodynamics, aircraft structures, propulsion, control, modelling, simulation, unmanned systems, aviation and space communications, and related technologies. Particular attention is given to research connecting engineering with training, safety, operations, readiness and technological innovation, contributing to institutional and professional performance in aviation environments.
Aviation safety and risk management
Aviation safety and risk management are central to the journal’s scope because safety affects every aspect of aviation, training and operations. This field includes safety culture, risk management, accident analysis, prevention, crisis communication, organisational safety, human factors, error management, institutional readiness, reporting systems, and learning from accidents and operational experience. The journal particularly welcomes studies integrating technical, behavioural and organisational analysis to understand and reduce risks and build more aware, responsive and sustainable training and operational environments.
Strategic and security studies
This field addresses the strategic and security dimensions of aviation and aviation, military and training institutions. It includes air power, national security, defence policies, strategic foresight, crisis management, readiness, strategic planning, soft threats, knowledge security and related strategic environments. It connects aviation and training with national policies, decisions and capabilities, examining the roles of knowledge, technology, communication and readiness in supporting security, stability and decision-making in complex environments.
Information science and knowledge management
This field examines how information and knowledge support institutional performance, training, safety and decision-making. It includes information systems, information behaviour, knowledge management, digital archiving, institutional memory, data quality, information flows, decision-support systems, information security and knowledge sovereignty. The journal focuses on converting information into usable knowledge and on how knowledge management improves training, strengthens safety, supports organisational learning and protects knowledge assets in aviation and sensitive environments.
Strategic and institutional media and communication
This field concerns the role of media and communication in building awareness, managing reputation, strengthening trust and supporting institutional responses in everyday situations and crises. It includes military media, institutional and strategic communication, reputation management, institutional image, crisis communication, safety awareness, digital media, and countering rumours and misinformation. The journal welcomes studies treating communication as a strategic element in aviation, military and educational institutions and as an influence on readiness, safety, risk management and relationships with internal and external audiences.
Artificial intelligence and intelligent systems
This field examines intelligent applications increasingly affecting aviation, training, safety, management and communication. Topics include artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analysis, predictive analytics, expert systems, intelligent simulation, virtual and augmented reality, robotics, unmanned systems, and AI applications in training, aviation, safety, media and decision-making. The journal considers their ethical, organisational and human dimensions alongside their technical aspects, and their capacity to improve decisions, performance, learning environments and operations.
Leadership, management and institutional governance
This field focuses on leadership, management and organisational factors affecting the effectiveness of aviation, military and educational institutions. It includes leadership, organisational behaviour, change management, team building, decision-making, governance, institutional culture, performance management, institutional innovation and human-capacity development. Successful aviation, training and safety systems depend on effective leadership, sound management, clear governance and an institutional culture supporting learning, quality, readiness and innovation, as well as technical capability.
Professional and military education and training
This field examines education and training systems as the foundation of professional competence and institutional readiness. It includes curriculum design, assessment of learning outcomes, competency-based training, e-learning, blended training, evaluation of training effectiveness, instructor preparation and the development of learning environments in military, professional and academic institutions. The journal particularly welcomes studies connecting programme design with actual performance needs and offering models, tools or indicators to improve education and training quality and assess their impact.
Related social sciences and humanities
This field welcomes studies of the human, social, cultural and organisational dimensions of aviation, training and safety. Topics include motivation, occupational stress, risk awareness, work ethics, institutional identity, organisational adaptation, and human factors affecting performance and decisions. People remain central to aviation, training and safety systems. Understanding psychological, social, cultural and organisational factors contributes to better performance, lower risk, stronger learning and more effective and stable working environments.
Types of Research the Journal Welcomes
The journal welcomes the following scholarly contributions, provided they align with its scope and meet publication and review requirements:
- Original research articles.
- Applied studies with a clear methodology.
- Systematic and analytical literature reviews.
- Conceptual and theoretical studies.
- Institutional or professional case studies with scholarly analysis.
- Strategic and policy analyses based on a clear methodology.
- Comparative studies.
- Short technical papers of scholarly or applied value.
- Reviews of recent books relevant to the journal’s fields.