Using fixed wing RPAS in emergencies and crisis

Sorin Dumitru

Solutions Consultancy Lead, Teamnet

Drones terminology

• UAV = Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

• RPAS = Remotely Piloted Aircraft System

• UAS = Unmanned Aircraft System

For hard to reach and dangerous environments, and to reduce costs

Why RPAS?

Manned helicopter and fixed wing

Unmanned multirotor and fixed wing

Alternatives

Manned helicopter and fixed wing(1-5t)

Helicopter Airplane

Initial cost 15M+ EUR 0.5-2M EUR

Maintenance cost Very high High

Operation & insurance cost 5000 – 7000 EUR / flight hour* 1500 – 3000 EUR /flight hour*

Pilot life risk Medium to high Medium to high

Operational efficiency High Medium to high

Operational flexibility High Medium to high

Real time transmission With additional equipment With additional equipment

* Higher costs are expected for flights during difficult missions

Data source: internal study

Unmanned multirotor and fixed wing(1-20kg)

Multirotor UAV Fixed wing “mini” UAV system

Initial cost 1-10K EUR 0.3-1M EUR

Maintenance cost Very low Low to very low

Operation & insurance cost <500 EUR / flight hour <500 EUR / flight hour

Pilot life risk NA NA

Operational efficiency Very high Very high

Operational flexibility Very high Very high

Real time transmission Optional Yes

Maximum speed 40 km/h 200 km/h

Endurance <45 min <180 min

Range (video and telemetry) 3 – 5 km 15 – 30 km

Data source: internal study

Exampleof auto piloted fixed wingenterprise RPA SystemAir vehicle, ground control station, data link terminal, takeoff, landing

Entire system should be easily carried in a 4x4 vehicle

Air vehicle

Composite materials (e.g. fiberglass, carbon fiber)

and usually has a modular structure:

• Wings, winglets;

• Battery pack(s);

• Propulsion system;

• Payload.

Enterprise RPAS specsWingspan: 2 to 4 m

Length: 1 to 2 m

Noise: 35 to 90+ dB

Maximum Take Off Weight

1 to 20 kg (“mini” cat.)

Maximum Speed

up to 200 km/h

Cruise Speed

up to 150 km/h

Service Ceiling

up to 3000 m ASL

Autonomy

0.5 to 5 h

Take off

Launcher, hand, runway

Landing

Parachute, runway

Max. Payload weight:

up to 2 kg

Propulsion: Electrical or

internal combustion

• Daylight camera (video);

• Thermal imaging camera (IR, video);

• High definition camera (stills);

• Multispectral camera (visible light, IR and more);

• Specialized sensors (e.g. chemical, radiological);

• Drop-off mechanism.

Usual payloads

GCS – GroundControl Station

• Missions planning and control;

• Changing flight plans during the missions;

• Self test, launch and recovery;

• View mission data (control data, video stream);

• Offline mission replay;

• Relay data to C2 or PSAP;

• Automated flight missions (e.g.: follow target)

Data link terminal

A high gain antenna that tracks the aircraft and provides:

• Transmission of mission and ground controls to aircraft;

• Reception of aircraft data;

• Transmission of payload control data;

• Reception of video and payload data;

It provides the real time video streaming range (up to 30km).

Takeoff

• Hand launch;

• Vehicle launch;

• Catapult;

• Runway.

Landing

• Parachute;

• Cable (crane or secondary multirotor RPAS);

• Runway.

Search and rescue, floods, wild fires, border surveillance

Scenarios

Search and Rescue• Fast and effective;

• Interoperable with other mobile and fixed forces

• High resolution real time aerial images;

• Can be integrated with PSAPs;

• Visual information on the victims’ condition.

SAR – Search and Rescue exercise

Floods

• Propagation prediction and warning;

• Search and rescue;

• Damage assessment;

• Aid drop-off;

• Can be integrated with PSAPs.

Number of houses affected 234 Number of people affected 512 Maximum water depth 1.32 m Dykes affected 73 m

Wild fires

• Detection

• Suppression

• Post fire monitoring

• Can be integrated with PSAPs

Border surveillance

• Rescuing refugees;

• Day and night surveillance.

• Can be integrated with PSAPs;

Integrating RPAS in PSAPs

Recommendations

Legal, safety, operational

• Local procedure requirements and smart airspace segregation- the solution for regulatory

framework

• RPAS should be complementary to manned air vehicles;

• Flight missions are being transformed:

• Search => unmanned;

• Rescue => manned;

• Mission allocations and flight sectors;

• Training is needed for RPAS operators (successful missions require hands-on experience);

• Spare parts, maintenance and support;

Key features

Key features:

• Integration with C2 (video and control);

• Video for acting fast, HD images to better see details;

• “Up in the air” time;

• Transmission range;

RPAS – a solution for hard to reach and dangerous

environments, and for reducing costs.

Conclusion

Q&ASorin Dumitru – sorin.dumitru@teamnet.ro