You turn your head up and look outside, and there's just nothing
At the threshold between instrument and instinct, where pilots descend through cloud toward runways they cannot yet see, a new tool has arrived to close that gap. AerAware, an FAA-certified helmet-mounted display system developed by AerSale and Universal Avionics, fuses nose-camera imagery with wearable cockpit displays to render the invisible visible during the most consequential moments of flight. Drawing on decades of military aviation technology, it now enters the commercial world at a time when runway safety remains an unresolved tension in an otherwise highly engineered system. The question is no longer whether such a tool can work, but how swiftly the industry will choose to embrace it.
- Pilots approaching fog-shrouded runways have long faced a moment of irreducible uncertainty — AerAware is designed to eliminate that moment before it becomes a tragedy.
- Runway incursions, though declining, still numbered 1,636 in fiscal year 2025, with pilot deviations driving nearly two-thirds of those incidents.
- The system's two-to-three-day installation window and FAA-approved training program lower the barrier for airlines considering fleet-wide adoption.
- Airlines are now asking not whether the technology works, but how quickly it can be certified, installed, and integrated into existing cockpit procedures.
- Growing carrier interest signals a shift from demonstration to deployment, with the next few years likely determining whether AerAware becomes standard equipment or a premium option.
Dror Yahav, CEO of Universal Avionics, knows the moment every commercial pilot carries: the descent through cloud toward a runway that hasn't appeared yet, instruments steady, visibility zero. It is the gap between what instruments say and what eyes can confirm. AerAware, developed by AerSale in partnership with Universal Avionics and certified by the FAA this year for Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft, was built to close that gap.
The system pairs a nose-mounted camera with wearable helmet displays worn by both pilots, overlaying real-time imagery and flight data directly into their field of view. Thermal imaging and sensor fusion render the runway visible even in fog or darkness. The design borrows from military aviation — specifically the helmet-mounted display technology used in the F-35 — and adapts it for the demands of commercial flight, where both pilots receive identical information to ensure redundancy during takeoff and landing.
Installation takes two to three days per aircraft, followed by FAA-approved pilot training. That timeline is practical enough for airlines to retrofit fleets without significant disruption, and carriers are taking notice. AerSale's Jacqueline Carlon reports growing interest from airlines evaluating the system, driven by both safety imperatives and operational efficiency. FAA data recorded 1,636 runway incursions in fiscal year 2025, down from 1,758 the prior year, with pilot deviations accounting for 62 percent of incidents — a statistic that gives the technology a clear and measurable problem to address.
The conversation in airline boardrooms has moved past whether AerAware works and toward the practical logistics of deployment: certification timelines, downtime, cockpit integration. Whether it becomes standard equipment across commercial fleets or a specialized investment will depend on the decisions carriers make over the next several years — decisions that will quietly shape what it means to land safely in weather that was once simply beyond human sight.
Dror Yahav remembers the moment that stays with every commercial pilot who has flown into weather: the approach to a runway you cannot see. You descend through cloud and fog, instruments steady in your hands, and when you finally break through the clouds, there is nothing but darkness or mist stretching ahead. The runway appears only at the last moment, if it appears at all. Now, as CEO of Universal Avionics, Yahav is helping bring a tool to market designed to solve that problem before it becomes dangerous.
The system is called AerAware. Developed by AerSale in partnership with Universal Avionics, it received Federal Aviation Administration certification this year for Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft. The technology combines a camera mounted in the aircraft's nose with wearable displays worn by both pilots—helmet-mounted screens that overlay flight data and real-time imagery directly into the pilot's field of view. Instead of looking out into darkness and waiting, a pilot can see the runway rendered on the display in front of their eyes, thermal imagery and sensor data fused together to create visibility where none exists.
The concept borrows from military aviation. Fighter pilots have used helmet-mounted displays for years, most notably in the F-35 Lightning II, where the system gives pilots the ability to see through the aircraft itself. AerAware adapts that principle for commercial flight. Both pilots receive identical information on their individual displays, ensuring redundancy and shared situational awareness during the most critical phases of flight—takeoff and landing, when most accidents occur.
Installing the system takes two to three days per aircraft. After installation comes pilot training under an FAA-approved program. The timeline is tight enough that airlines can retrofit their fleets without massive operational disruption, and that matters. Airlines are paying attention. Yahav and Jacqueline Carlon, senior vice president of marketing and communications for AerSale, report growing interest from carriers evaluating the system for their Boeing 737 fleets. The drivers are clear: safety and efficiency. Runway incursions—instances where aircraft or vehicles enter a runway without authorization or stray from their assigned path—remain a persistent concern in commercial aviation. FAA data shows 1,636 runway incursions in fiscal year 2025, down from 1,758 the year before and 1,760 in 2023. Pilot deviations account for 62 percent of those incidents. A system that gives pilots better visibility and situational awareness during the moments when mistakes are most costly addresses a real problem.
What airlines are evaluating, according to Carlon, is not just the technology itself but the practical questions: How long does certification take? How much downtime does installation require? How does it integrate with existing cockpit systems and procedures? These are the questions that determine whether a promising technology actually gets installed on aircraft or remains a demonstration project. For AerAware, the answers appear to be favorable enough that the conversation has moved from whether the system works to how quickly it can be deployed. The declining runway incursion numbers suggest that focus on the problem is working. Whether AerAware becomes standard equipment or remains a specialized tool for airlines that prioritize the investment will become clear over the next few years as more carriers evaluate the system and make their decisions.
Notable Quotes
You turn your head up and look outside, and there's just nothing — pitch black or foggy— Dror Yahav, CEO of Universal Avionics, describing low-visibility approaches
Safety and operational efficiency drive interest as airlines evaluate upgrades for Boeing 737 fleets— Jacqueline Carlon, AerSale senior vice president of marketing and communications
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does a pilot need to see the runway on a display when they can look out the window?
Because in fog or darkness, there is nothing to see out the window. The runway is there, but invisible. The display shows it anyway—thermal imaging, sensor data—so the pilot knows where to land before they can see it with their eyes.
Is this a safety system or a convenience system?
It's safety. Low-visibility approaches are where accidents happen. If a pilot can see the runway earlier and more clearly, they make better decisions. That's not convenience. That's the difference between a safe landing and a problem.
Why does each pilot need their own display instead of sharing one?
Redundancy. If one display fails, the other pilot still has the information. And both pilots see the same thing at the same time, so there's no confusion about what either one is seeing or doing.
How is this different from existing head-up displays in cockpits?
Traditional head-up displays are fixed to the instrument panel. These are wearable—they move with your head. You can look around and the information stays with you. It's more like what military pilots use.
What's the real barrier to adoption?
Installation time and training. Airlines need to know they can retrofit an aircraft in a few days without losing revenue. If it takes weeks, they won't do it. The fact that it's two or three days matters more than the technology itself.
What happens if the system fails during a landing?
The pilot still has their instruments and their training. The system is an aid, not a replacement. But the point is that it shouldn't fail—it's redundant, and pilots are trained to use it as a tool, not a crutch.