Autopilot takes over from unconscious F-16 pilot

They should put that in commercial jets

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AutoGCAS (Automated Ground Collision Avoidance System) has been tested and reliable for a very good number of years. It had been a primary focus of mine to implore AF leadership to push for its fleet wide funding for the F-16. After 15 years, I lost track of the number of F-16 pilots, some who were my friends, who were lost to GLOC or SD related collisions with the ground. I was an investigator for several and consultant for many fatal Class As involving the above. In virtually every single case, AGCAS would have avoided the death of the pilot and loss of the weapon system. The Air Force decided on implementing AGCAS in phases starting with Predictive GCAS...which was AGCAS without the software ties to the flight controls. Bottom line is that it was really hard to change old school fighter pilots' preconceptions regarding the machine taking over. It took many years of pursuading, much of it by me, to get folks to understand that if this sytem took control of the jet, you were about to die.

 

Great job in pushing for it. The info I've read from NASA is 4 pilots saved due to this technology.

Good stuff

NASA-Pioneered Automatic Ground-Collision Avoidance System Operational | NASA

 

Sounds like a good system if a pilot regains consciousness. Is remote control of the aircraft (like a drone) possible or contemplated in a future upgrade?

 

Can't emphasize it enough. Kudos to Will for having the grit, will and determination to stick to it.




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Not necessary except for some possible rare and weird scenarios like bird strike to the head without being dead already, etc. LOC and SD situations are generally very brief...all the system should ever need to do is roll wings level and max G pull to nose high to avoid collision with the ground. From high altitude it was set for 1000' min pull out clearance plane with the ground. At low level it used different parameters which I can't recall exactly but which were always being calculated in an infinite loop based on atitude, airspeed, and altitude above the ground based off INS position cross referenced with DTED (Digital Terrain Elevation Data).

 

This was one of the coolest vida I've seen. Listening to the frantic calls over the radio is chilling. It's nuts to think that a couple of years ago that airman probably would have lost his life.

 

My uncle, R.I.P., said that after the plane stabilized, he let go of the controls to let it fly itself.

If one of you would like to start a dedicated "F-16" thread here, please make the first post using the Locheed-Martin interview on YouTube, where my uncle describes the first flight at Edwards when the plane went out of control during a high-speed taxi run. I'm over my posting limit of attachments for a non-subscriber. Thanks in advance!

 

Lost a couple of friends to g-loc, we always thought thought this was a good idea, in the 90's we were just thechno limited....RIP Chico and Willie..... VCSL

 

I worked on the design and development of the old LASTE system on the A-10's in the late 80's early 90's that included GCAS...the article is a bit misleading of course its a NASA document....it does work and save lives...

 

+1 Very cool!

 

I was flying the A-10 when that system came out. All I can say is great job!