Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System, or GCAS was developed jointly by the Air Force Research Lab’s Aerospace Systems Directorate, Lockheed-Martin Skunk WorksTM, and NASA. It is designed to reduce controlled flight into terrain, or CFIT, which accounts for 26 percent of aircraft losses and 75 percent of all F-16 pilot fatalities. It will eventually protect more than 3,200 F-35s and their pilots.
The team has also developed an Automatic Air Collision Avoidance System (Auto ACAS). Together, the two systems form the Automatic Integrated Collision Avoidance System (Auto ICAS), the world’s first fully automatic, integrated, combat flight safety system that prevents both air-to-air and air-to-ground collisions. The developers were honored with two Aviation Week Laureate Awards and the 2018 Robert J. Collier Trophy.