The application of head up displays to reduce both controlled flight into terrain and approach and landing accidents through enhanced situational awareness

The increase in air transport traffic in recent years coupled with the projected further increases in the next decade has been generally recognised as having highlighted the need to achieve continually increasing levels of safety for air transport operations. This paper describes an enhanced visual guidance system (EVGS) which assists the safe operation of the aircraft by increasing the pilot´s situational awareness during the critical phases of flight, both in VFR and IMC conditions. It contains images of flight testing with millimetre wave radar sensors at differing frequencies which graphically illustrate the power of the system described in helping to reduce controlled flight into terrain, approach and landing accidents, and its potential to increase terrain awareness in the future.