Gulfstream Aerospace last month became the first Part 25 original equipment manufacturer to have an FAA-certified synthetic vision system — and it’s 3-D, according to Gulfstream. The company’s Synthetic Vision-Primary Flight Display (SV-PFD) and Enhanced Vision System (EVS) II are approved on Gulfstream G350, G450, G500, and G550 aircraft. The SV-PFD, which is expected to become available to customers in the second quarter of 2008, shows three-dimensional color terrain images overlaid with primary flight display symbology. The EVS II, which is 22 pounds lighter and packed with considerably more computational power than its original incarnation, provides infrared imagery on a head-up display (HUD). The two systems work together as the EVS II confirms the imagery displayed on the SV-PFD. Using both systems together provides flight crew “unmatched magnitude of pilot situational awareness and a flight path that is always visible” regardless of what’s going on outside, according to Gulfstream. What’s next? Gulfstream is working with Rockwell Collins to create a head-up display that will integrate flight information and infrared image information. The HUD-II would be compatible with EVS-II and integrated with PlaneView.
