News Release
GULFSTREAM ENHANCED VISION SYSTEM™ EARNS PRAISE FROM CUSTOMER PILOTS
“This system will save lives.”
SAVANNAH, Ga., Oct. 6, 2003 – Since the first Gulfstream Enhanced Vision System (EVS) was installed in May 2002, Gulfstream Aerospace, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has received acclaim from business jet pilots and operators who recognize the intrinsic value of the vision-enhancing system.
Recently, U.S. Navy pilots transporting a Navy VIP to a military field near Copenhagen, Denmark, found the EVS valuable in safely landing their C-37A, the military version of the Gulfstream V, in undetected and unreported weather conditions that significantly limited their visibility. Lieutenant Commander Tony Pucciarella, who serves as the director of the C-37A Fleet Introduction Team, explained the situation.
“The local air traffic control indicated there were scattered low ceilings and approximately three miles visibility, which meant we could land by way of VFR (Visual Flight Rules),” he recounted. “Approach told us to expect the visual. It was night and you could see patchy fog on the ground. At about 30 minutes out, I turned on the EVS even though, based on the current weather reports, I didn’t think I’d need it.
“Although approach was setting us up for the visual, I asked for the PAR (Precision Approach Radar) because the weather appeared to worsen before our eyes. We actually could see the fog form during our final approach. I had the runway on EVS well before we reached visual minimums. The EVS clearly depicted the runway and landing environment, allowing us to safely guide the aircraft into an unfamiliar field at night with low visibility and a foreign PAR. It was also useful in taxiing to our final destination.”
According to LCDR Pucciarella, within three minutes of parking the aircraft and disembarking, the visibility dropped to “0/0,” meaning the bottom of the clouds was at 0 feet and visibility was at 0 miles.
“I wish we had EVS in the rental car because the fog was so thick we couldn’t even find the exit from the parking lot to get on our way to the hotel,” he added.
The Gulfstream EVS remains the first of its kind certified by the FAA. The Gulfstream EVS also is the only system that features a cryogenically cooled detector, which provides an unmatched level of sensitivity in identifying runway lights during approach.
In response to a recent Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Notice of Proposed Rule-Making (NPRM) on the specifics of EVS, several operators commended the Gulfstream EVS in their response to the NPRM.
Commander R. D. Belisle, commanding officer of the Coast Guard Air Station Washington, wrote, “As an EVS operator, I have seen firsthand the benefits to situational awareness, runway incursion prevention (by aircraft, vehicles and animals alike) and terrain avoidance. I believe that the overall operational benefit of the Gulfstream EVS is not just for the improved minima during low visibility approach ... but in the overall additional safety the system brings to our aircraft specifically and the aviation community in general.”
Commander Clay G. Tettlebach, United States Naval Reserve, wrote in a letter to the FAA, “As EVS operators, my squadron pilots have seen the benefit to situational awareness, runway incursion prevention and terrain avoidance provided by the EVS system. During several night approaches to unfamiliar airfields, the EVS has provided immeasurable situational awareness to the pilot. The picture provided by the EVS has heightened the awareness of the surrounding terrain and runway environment to the point that night approaches with the EVS are a comfortable as day approaches.”
Tom Flemming, director of Aviation, Airflite, which operates GV aircraft with EVS, succinctly identified the real benefit of EVS.
“This is the greatest safety advance in recent times,” he said. “This system will save lives.”
The Gulfstream EVS is available as a retrofit on the large-cabin, long-range GIV-SP and the large-cabin, ultra-long-range GV business jets. Since the Gulfstream EVS was introduced two years ago, Gulfstream has installed EVS as a retrofit on 45 GV aircraft, and on six GIV-SP aircraft.
In addition to retrofit installations, the Gulfstream EVS is available on new-production aircraft. To date, Gulfstream has delivered an ultra-long-range G550, a long-range G400 and a mid-range G300 with EVS onboard.
When Gulfstream’s G550 received its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Type Certificate in August, the Gulfstream EVS became the first of its kind to be included as a standard system on a newly certified aircraft. And like the G550, Gulfstream’s newest large-cabin, long-range business jet, the G450 will include EVS as standard equipment when it begins customer deliveries in 2005.
Certified by the Federal Aviation in December 2002 for use on a Gulfstream business jet, the Gulfstream EVS was developed in cooperation with Kollsman Inc. The system incorporates a specially designed forward-looking infrared (FLIR) camera that projects an infrared real-world image on the pilot's Honeywell Head-Up Display (HUD). EVS, which addresses many of the issues raised in the FAA's Safer Skies Agenda, enables the flight crew to see runway markings, taxiways, adjacent roads and surrounding areas in conditions of limited visibility. The system also helps crews avoid runway incursion and hazards that would otherwise not be easily visible.
Gulfstream EVS has received recognition for its significant contributions to enhancing aviation safety from the Fédération Aeronautíque Internationale with a Honeywell Bendix Trophy and has garnered a Flight International Aerospace Industry Award.
NOTE TO EDITORS
Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports the world’s most technologically advanced business jet aircraft. Gulfstream has produced more than 1,400 aircraft for customers around the world since 1958. To meet the diverse transportation needs of the future, Gulfstream offers a comprehensive fleet of aircraft, comprising the mid-cabin, high-speed Gulfstream G100™; the wide-cabin, high-speed Gulfstream G150™; the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G200™; the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G300™; the large-cabin, long-range Gulfstream G400™; the large-cabin, long-range G450™; the large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream G500™ and the large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream G550™. Gulfstream also offers aircraft ownership services via Gulfstream Financial Services Division and Gulfstream Pre-Owned Aircraft Sales®. The company employs more than 6,750 people at seven major locations. We invite you to visit our Web site for more information and photos of Gulfstream aircraft at www.gulfstream.com.
General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Virginia, employs approximately 64,600 people worldwide and estimates 2003 revenues of $15.5 billion. The company has leading market positions in mission-critical information systems and technologies, land and amphibious combat systems, shipbuilding and marine systems, and business aviation. More information about the company can be found on the World Wide Web at www.generaldynamics.com.
