Auto GCAS system

[GKABS]

Saving the Good Guys with Auto GCAS Technology

The cockpit of a fighter jet is a busy and dangerous place to work. High-speed fighter aircraft maneuvers can produce g-forces strong enough to render a pilot unconscious or cause spatial disorientation. The pace and complexity of modern aerial combat can also mentally “overload” a pilot and lead to task saturation or target fixation. All can prove deadly.

Thankfully, innovative systems have been developed to reduce these risks and help eliminate the leading cause of F-16 pilot fatalities: crashing an undamaged aircraft into the ground. The Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto GCAS) was purpose-built to prevent these deadly crashes and has already been credited with 12 saves—13 pilots, 12 F-16s—since the system entered service with the U.S. Air Force in late 2014.

12 Saves and Counting

This video from the head-up-display (HUD) of an F-16 illustrates how the Auto GCAS helped save the life of an F-16 student pilot who lost consciousness during a training mission.

The student pilot, training with the Arizona Air National Guard’s 152nd Fighter Squadron, succumb to G-Induced Loss of Consciousness (GLOC) during a high-speed maneuver. As the unconscious pilot’s F-16 careened toward the ground, the Auto GCAS determined that a ground collision was imminent and initiated a fly up maneuver to roll the F-16’s wings level and upright as the pilot regained consciousness and added Gs to the recovery, saving both pilot and plane.