The Army's chief acquisition executive, Heidi Shyu, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, spent a full day at U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in late June to learn about technologies being developed and tested that allow helicopter pilots to "see" through otherwise obscure clouds of blinding desert dust. Shyu received detailed briefings from senior program officials, but the highlight was flying downrange to view that technology in action in a real-world setting.
Extensive efforts are being made to devise a solution enabling helicopter pilots to navigate through what is called a "degraded visual environment" (DVE) caused by swirls of dust or snow. Huge clouds of dust, for instance, are kicked up by helicopters when landing in the desert, thwarting the ability of the pilot to view obstacles and accurately know the location of the aircraft in relation to surrounding terrain.
Obviously, this is a dangerous situation responsible for causing numerous accidents. A DVE is the No. 1 cause of non-combat Army fatalities.
YPG workers have designed a realistic obstacle and target array for the testing, which includes power lines, posts and poles of varying composition, trees, foliage and much more. The desert soil is disked regularly to assure that helicopters create huge clouds of dust, blinding the ability of pilots to safely land without the aid of newly developed sensor systems.
"We're the perfect place within the Army Test and Evaluation Command to test DVE sensor technology," said YPG Technical Director Julio Dominguez. "Of the non-hostile helicopter accidents overseas, over 30 percent were caused by dust. The work taking place here is vital to improving safety."
The system being developed to remedy the problem is called the Degraded Visual Environment Pilotage System. The system fuses together, assembles, in other words, data gathered from a variety of sensors (forward looking infrared radar, light detection and ranging systems, multi-mode radar, and others) and displays a visual image to the pilot. This image is surprisingly crisp, detailed and accurate.
The goal is to enable helicopter pilots to navigate successfully and safely amid adverse conditions.
"We already operate at night better than our adversaries, hence the motto 'We own the night,'" said Bert Evans, YPG Sensor Test Branch Team Lead. "The objective is for us to own 'all environments,' enabling us to perform rescue or combat missions amid dust or snow storms." The dusty environment is the harshest and most challenging environment for sensors, he said. The success of this technology will be useful in the development of similar capabilities for other air and ground systems.
Many research studies have been performed on soils in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as soil at YPG, and there are many similarities regarding the size of dust particles and their exact composition. One study he hopes to perform in the near future is to quantify dust clouds -- looking at dust density, particle size, and visibility within the cloud. The intention would be to accurately record the environmental factors that affect sensor performance, and replicate that environment for more accurate sensor-to-sensor comparison in future test activities.
Acquisition executive Shyu got an eyeful at the YPG test site located about 50 miles from the proving ground headquarters building.
"Spending a full day at a military base is absolutely huge," she said. "Instead of watching slide after slide of PowerPoint data, I was able to see the actual system in use. This is far more important than listening to presentations. You must do this."
Shyu says her interest in helicopter operations in degraded environments goes back a long way. "Solving the brownout problem would be a huge capability enabler for warfighters. What is taking place at Yuma Proving Ground is critical."
From her perspective, military budgets in the future will continue to be tight due to sequestration. "Particularly in this fiscally constrained environment, we must be judicious in how we spend our money. What is going on at the proving ground is extremely high priority. I saw a great job here, performed by dedicated folks. I'm very impressed."
Shyu said she now has a broader perspective of the capability that exists at Yuma Proving Ground and looks forward to an opportunity to return in the future.
Lt. Col. James DeBoer, Yuma Test Center commander, piloted the aircraft Shyu took to the test site and discussed the various ranges over which the helicopter passed. He explained the diversity of YPG's test programs and highlighted the proving ground's history.
"She seemed impressed by the vast variety of tests we perform," said DeBoer. "She viewed a very important program for the Army, so this was a good experience for everyone involved."
Related Links:
The U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command
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