Pilot safety enhancement for on-board ground collision avoidance systems

The goal of the paper is to present an enhancement of the existing on-board ground collision avoidance system (GCAS) that is designed to increase pilot safety in USAF A-10 aircraft. The A-10 is a single-seat, twin-engine aircraft with a 30 mm, seven-barreled Gatling gun and 11 weapon pylons designed to fly at low level in close air support missions. The GCAS system provides both visual and aural cues for a pilot-initiated recovery. The proposed algorithm of GCAS enhancement is built on a simple linear regression model that predicts the recovery height of the aircraft following a warning call and allows pilots to compare their own training events with flight test standards. This paper presents a discussion of model development, validation and comparison of the model predictions with actual flight test events. A comparison of recovery techniques and pilot options is included. A series of recommendations and possible usage for Air Force pilot training are also discussed.