Redmond aviation engineer's lifelong work has saved thousands of lives - The Seattle Times

[PaperMan]

Redmond aviation engineer's lifelong work has saved thousands of lives - The Seattle Times

<!-- qtitle: Chief executive of the nonprofit Flight Safety Foundation -->
<!-- quote: It's accepted within the industry that Don Bateman has probably saved more lives than any single person in the history of aviation." -->
<!-- quote: Bill Voss -->
<!-- Blurb: Once an all-too-common tragedy, flying into a mountainside has been essentially eliminated by cockpit warning technology invented by Redmond's Don Bateman. -->

A small King Air turboprop took off last month into a sunny sky from Boeing Field, swung west, and sped straight toward the Olympic Mountains at more than 200 mph. On the electronic map display in front of the pilot, a block of red warned that the plane was on course to slam into the twin peaks called The Brothers.

About 3.5 miles out from the snow-covered rock face, a red light flashed on the instrument panel and a recorded voice squawked loudly from a speaker.

"Caution — Terrain. Caution — Terrain."

The pilot ignored it. Just a minute away from hitting the peaks, he held a steady course.

Ten seconds later, the system erupted again, repeating the warning in a more urgent voice.

The pilot still flew on. Snow and rock loomed straight ahead.

Suddenly the loud command became insistent.

"Terrain. Pull up! Pull up! Pull up! Pull up! Pull up!"

Finally, the pilot calmly pulled the nose up. As the plane skimmed safely over the peaks, the instruments fell silent.

You can thank Redmond engineer Don Bateman for this lifesaving technology.

More than 40 years ago, Bateman invented the "ground proximity warning" system that prevents pilots in poor visibility from flying a perfectly functioning airplane into a mountain or some other obstacle.

The technology eliminated the "No. 1 killer in aviation for decades," said Bill Voss, chief executive of the Flight Safety Foundation. "It's accepted within the industry that Don Bateman has probably saved more lives


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