Aircraft Warning System

A terrain awareness and warning system (TAWS) aims to prevent "controlled flight into terrain" (CFIT) accidents. The actual systems in current use are known as ground proximity warning system and enhanced GPWS. The U.S.Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) developed the TAWS term to encompass all current and future systems which meet the relevant FAA standards. New systems, with different names than GPWS and EGPWS, may be developed which meet TAWS objectives. As well, the term TAWS is sometimes used to refer to second-generation EGPWS systems as opposed to first generation GPWS systems, although this usage can be confusing.

As of 2007, 5% of the world's commercial airlines still lack a TAWS, leading to a prediction of two CFIT accidents in 2009, even though they were completely preventable.

Several factors can still place aircraft at risk for CFIT accidents: older TAWS systems, deactivation of the EGPWS system, or ignoring TAWS warnings when an airport is not in the TAWS database.