GORAC - GCAS Operational Requirements and Certification
Overview
Background & policy context:
The most important category of aircraft in-flight crashes is related to properly operating aircraft performing a so-called Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT). Reasons for aircraft crashing into the ground may be diverse, and the best way to improve safety will be new automatic alert systems to notify cockpit crews about dangerous proximity to the ground.
A new generation of Ground Collision Avoidance Systems (GCAS), which is currently under final development, will provide a predictive alert to pilots of looming contact with the ground. However, the introduction of a complex, all-new avionics system requires regulatory and certification standards to be set, prior to full operational use.
Objectives:
GORAC aimed to consider and develop the requirements for GCAS in terms of certification (airworthiness) and operational issues. The main objectives of GORAC have been to:
- derive operational standards suitable for GCAS from, e.g. the existing Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) or similar approaches;
- assess the use of a terrain database, predictive algorithms and a new Human Machine Interface (HMI) within GCAS;
- assess the suitability of simulation facilities that are understood to play an important role in the verification and validation of collision avoidance systems;
- establish certification requirements on GCAS for the European Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) and national certification authorities;
- provide preliminary guidance on demonstrating system compliance to defined certification requirements.
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