A ground and obstacle collision avoidance technique (GOCAT)

The need to provide aircrew with a timely warning of a dangerously close approach to the terrain is discussed, along with the benefits this capability is expected to provide and specific requirements that it must fulfil. The ground proximity warning techniques that are available are reviewed, and their benefits and limitations are assessed. The GEC Avionics Ground and Obstacle Collision Avoidance Technique (GOCAT) is described. The particular advantages of the GOCAT approach are identified. Because GOCAT uses a database of the terrain and obstacles around the aircraft it has a very low nuisance alarm rate but will always generate a warning when the aircraft is in a dangerous situation. Issues of parameter selection, search area definition and system limitations are examined. The results of a GOCAT simulation are presented. The system performance parameters are discussed, and database requirements are reviewed. The characteristics of a practical implementation for both civil and military applications are briefly stated