Jason B. Heyman
ASCI 530
Activity 6-4
18 September 2015
UAS Mission
Unmanned aviation systems (UAS) can be utilized in a variety of missions in both civilian and military applications. The use of UAS in the field of forestry specifically forest fire will be one in which these systems may have a significant role. Every year in the United States there are thousands of forest fires. So far 2015 has seen a total of 46,474 fires burning 8,821,040 acres of land. (National Interagency Fire Center, 2015). There are hundreds of companies that specialize in air attack utilizing slurry bombers to assist ground crews in battling the fires. One of the mission sets for these groups is intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance role (ISR) or fire spotting. This is conducted by a number of different aircraft, but the one that I’m intimately familiar with is the King Air C90. These aircraft are not inexpensive to operate and require refueling often. The aircrews also have specific requirements that must be met throughout the work cycle. This is a role and mission that could be conducted by a UAS with a specific design. Three possible systems are the Octotron SkySeer, the MQ-1 Predator and the small quad-copter UAV.
In 2007, the United States Forest Service (USFS) purchased two Sky Seer unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) with the intent to test them for specific operations. Due to the regulatory climate at the time the USFS benched the $100,000 systems (Gabbert, 2013). No information has been found recently on the USFS website that would indicate they are currently using these systems although a number of government entities now possess certificates of authorization to either test or utilize these types of systems (Jeffrey, 2012). Due to its 2 mile range, the Octotron Sky Seer would be a good short range system for missions such as small fire support and reconnaissance and use by hot shot crews and slightly larger units. The SkySeer weighs in at 5lbs, is quiet due to its electric motors and can be assembled in minutes (Johnson, 2013). It is a hand launched platform that is small and compact enough that it can be man-packed not creating an issue for already overload crew members. The system has a flight time of up to 70 minutes depending on power supply and sensors incorporated into the aircraft (Johnson, 2013). It is recoverable by deploying a parachute or landing traditionally given space available (Johnson, 2013). Just like most systems, this one can be controlled autonomously through the use of global positioning systems (GPS) and the use of software based graphical user interface (GUI) that a user can input waypoints and allow the system to fly. Furthermore, the system is capable of recording video from sensors on either a thumb drive or a DVD via the ground based station (Johnson, 2013).
A second system capable of larger fire support is the MQ-1 Predator. Due to its size, fuel requirements and payload capacity this system would be available to provide up to 24 hours of coverage and ISR, full motion video support for crews battling large coverage wild fires (DOD, 2015). Although this is system is by far out of the price range for small fire departments it could be available to crews on a temporary basis on loan from other branches of the government. During the Rim Fire at Yosemite in 2013 the California Air National Guard provided support flying missions with the MQ-1 (Gabbert, 2015). This system can carry a number of sensors but the organic cameras and assets include, ‘the ball’ which is capable of laser range finding, day and night tv viewing, infra-red sensing and more (DOD, 2015). This could prove to be indispensable to fire support in any type of fire situation. The ability to see a hot spot before it flares can provide commanders the ability to direct ground crews to extinguish it (California Air National Guard, 2013). The system is a long range asset and one that wouldn’t be maxed out due to the size of the fire. In addition to full motion video it may also be a good choice for fire marking providing tanker after tanker the ability to drop retardant or water for multiple hours at a time. The locations of targets, in this case the fire, can be updated to the tracker software in the form of reference points giving both the operators, manned systems and ground personnel good situational awareness as to the status of both the fire and the equipment.
The pilot and the sensor operator can use the autopilot systems and the operational mission planning software to place the predator in a long term loiter over a fire giving the incident commander (IC) eyes on the objective for up to 24 hours at a time (DOD, 2015). The system can also support remote terminal viewing that can be sent to approved screens possibly ones that crews can utilize in the field to help them determine fire lines (DOD, 2012). One of the challenges of utilizing this system is the cost of employing it, and if not an organic asset, the ability to acquire its use through other governmental agencies may be difficult; however, it proved its worth in the Rim Fire of 2013.
If you conduct an internet search for a multi-copter used for firefighting you will see numerous returns for many systems that have been used to aid firefighter but no real systems that have been developed for such a role. Multi-rotor systems may prove to be a reliable system for the role due to the fact they can land and takeoff vertically in tight spots; a situation in which firefighters may find themselves. Indoor firefighting doesn’t provide space enough to operate fixed wing, but may be suitable for small quadcopter type assets. These same quad or hex copters could provide fire fighters the ability to reconnoiter the outside structure of a building prior to laddered assets arriving on scene. Their use may also keep firefighters out of dangerous situations while conducting searches. The use of a cheap system such as the DJI phantom may provide eyes on hard to reach places quickly enabling the IC to make timely decisions, but it may not stand up to high temperatures a fire could produce. Students at Utah’s Weber State University have developed a firefighting UAV that attempts to fix the issue of communications issues surround line-of-sight that often hinder real-time firefighting intelligence (Weber State University, 2015). The system utilizes a FM repeater for these types of operations that happen in the Rocky Mountain regions. (Weber State University, 2015). Another issue surrounding these types of UAV is the limited flight time. Students have also incorporated a tether able cable system that will allow the multicopter to stay aloft for up to 8 hours. (Weber State University, 2015).
REFERENCES
California Air National Guard. (2013). Predator plays critical role in rim fire fight. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8IO4HbPvZc#t=152
Department of the Army. (2015). Technical Manual Operators Manual for MQ-1B Unmanned Aircraft System Warrior Alpha. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.
Gabbert, B. (2013). Forest service not using $100,000 worth of drones. Retrieved from http://fireaviation.com/2013/12/04/forest-service-not-using-100000-drones/
Jeffrey, T. (2012). FAA has authorized 106 government ‘entities’ to fly domestic drones. Retrieved from http://cnsnews.com/news/article/faa-has-authorized-106-government-entities-fly-domestic-drones
Johnson, R. (2013). Orlando florida patrolled by surveillance drones as early as this summer. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/orlando-octatron-skyseeer-florida-surveillance-drones-2013-1
National Interagency Fire Center. (2015). National Preparedness. Retrieved from http://www.nifc.gov/fireInfo/nfn.htm
Weber State University. (2015). Firefighting UAV. Retrieved from http://www.weber.edu/COAST/Firefighting_UAV.html