The
original Gulfstream EVS, and now the second-generation EVS II, uses a
nose-mounted FLIR (forward-looking infrared) camera, specially designed
by Elbit Systems of America – Commercial Aviation Kollsman, to generate
actual, real-time images of the aircraft’s surroundings. The system
dramatically increases situational awareness at night and during
low-visibility daylight conditions by allowing pilots to see terrain,
runways, taxiways and approaches that are undetectable by unaided
sight. To date, EVS I is in-service on 464 Gulfstream aircraft, while
EVS II is in-service on 36 Gulfstream aircraft.

“For more than 50 years, safety has been the prime focus at
Gulfstream,” said Pres Henne, senior vice president, Programs,
Engineering and Test, Gulfstream. “This milestone reaffirms that. It
has been said that the Gulfstream EVS is one of the greatest strides
forward in aviation safety since the introduction of the instrument
landing system in 1929.”

Initially
certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in September
2001, the Gulfstream EVS was the first of its type to be available on a
business-jet aircraft. In late 2007 and early 2008, Gulfstream became
the first Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to have both enhanced
and synthetic vision systems — EVS II and Synthetic Vision-Primary
Flight Display (SV-PFD) — certified at the same time by the FAA,
bringing a new and unmatched level of safety to the flight deck. The
EVS II, whose hardware components are 22 pounds lighter, with four
times the computational power and four times the memory of the
original, has an improved maintenance interface within the Gulfstream
PlaneView flight deck featuring Honeywell Primus Epic avionics.

In July 2009, Gulfstream received FAA certification to use EVS II on
the wide-cabin, high-speed Gulfstream G150. The system is available for
both new and in-service G150 aircraft. With the addition of the G150,
the Gulfstream EVS is now available either as an option, or in some
instances standard, on Gulfstream
GIV/GIV-SP/GV/G150/G300/G350/G400/G450/G500/G550 aircraft. It will also
be available as an option on the new Gulfstream G250 and will be
standard on the new, ultra-large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream
G650.

On large-cabin aircraft, the EVS
image appears on a Head-Up Display (HUD) unit. On the G150, the images
appear on 12-by-10-inch LCD Multi-Function Displays (MFDs) and are
easily selectable through the G150 Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 menu
system.

In recognition of its efforts in
developing the Gulfstream EVS, the company received the FAA’s
Excellence in Aviation Research Award for 2004, a 2002 Flight
International Aerospace Industry Award, a 2002 “Diplome D’ Honneur”
from the Federation Aeronautique Internationale, and the 2002 Honeywell
Bendix Award for Aviation Safety.