This Comanche crashed in a level attitude on autopilot after its pilot lost consciousness. Though he survived, most pilots and passengers involved in a CFIT accident aren’t so lucky.

by Jeb Burnside

It’s kind of a cute acronym when you pronounce it: “see-fit.” But the reality of controlled flight into terrain is anything but cute. One moment, an aircraft and its occupants are droning along in relative calm, perhaps preparing for a landing or just departing on what promises to be an enjoyable flight. The next moment, the airplane and its contents are strewn across a remote mountainside. It doesn’t have to be that way, and new technology—TAWS—coming to a cockpit near you is designed to minimize the CFIT threat. …