Patent ID: 7177763

Claim:
Method for preventing airplanes from impermissibly approaching defendable ground objects, with the momentary flight position being recorded in a satellite-based way and used for manual and automatic flight corrections, comprising the following features: a defendable ground object is assigned a virtual prohibited zone spatially surrounding it, the outer boundary of which has a sufficient horizontal minimum distance from the ground object and a vertical minimum distance determining a given minimum crossing altitude; the prohibited zone is assigned a virtual correction zone laterally surrounding it, the outer boundary of which has a horizontal minimum distance from the outer boundary of the prohibited zone in any case sufficient for distance deviation corrections and an altitude equal to that of the prohibited zone; the correction zone is assigned a virtual alarm zone spatially surrounding it, the outer boundary of which has a horizontal minimum distance from the outer boundary of the correction zone in any case sufficient for manual deviation corrections; the geographical data of the outer boundaries of at least the alarm and the correction zone are recorded and, together with the vertical minimum distance or the minimum crossing altitude, digitally stored and kept in every airplane with access protection provided as well as displayed in the cockpit; the momentary flight position is continuously recorded in a satellite-based way and the momentary flight altitude established and such instantaneous data are compared with the geographical data of the outer boundaries of the alarm zone and the correction zone; in the event of an airplane's penetration into the alarm zone detected upon comparison of the aforesaid position data, a warning signal is transmitted until the airplane's withdrawal from the alarm zone, and the airplane is at the same time allowed to be steered manually for the purposes of leaving the alarm zone; in the event of an airplane's lateral penetration into the correction zone detected upon comparison of the aforesaid position data, the airplane's manual steerability is temporarily inhibited and replaced by autopilot control to the right or left forcing withdrawal from the correction zone at least until the airplane reaches the alarm zone again; and in the event that the vertical minimum distance determining the given minimum crossing altitude is approached in descent above the prohibited zone and the correction zone, a descent limitation to at minimum the minimum crossing altitude is forced; and wherein the prohibited, correction and alarm zones each being defined by a predetermined radii.