Activity 2.5 Responses to Activity 1.5

Blog Responses for Activity 2.5

Sung Yi
Good blog post, Peyton.
Thank you for your continuous service for the world peace.  While reading your blog post, a couple of questions popped up in my mind.  Please disregard my questions if there is a possible OPSEC issue.
Can FALCO EO/IR sensors be integrated to produce the final image? In other words...for example, can SAR image be integrated with color/IR/thermal sensor to depict more accurate picture?  If so, can this be processed with the onboard computer or at the ground station?
Thank you.  btw, how's Congo?
Response: Sung, the EO/IR package is integrated into the ground station via a basic video recorder. We start the recorder during preflight operations and stop the recorder after the engine is turned off during the parking checklist. We note the times the recorder was recording so if anyone needs specific images or video they can just call up the video on the player and record it to a USB stick. The SAR images are in color and are layered over thermal sensor image. It is a very basic SAR system but has been useful to the United Nations when looking at specific targets to gather information.
Peyton,
Good job, I really liked that you used something based off your own experience; that's really cool! The only recommendation is to have a picture of the HCU (which is a significant portion of your article) since the actual article does not show a picture of any drone or HCU. But great job!
Nikki Nicely
Response: Hey Nikki, I will update the blog with pictures for more clarity of the subject matter.

Peyton,

Your information on the EO/IR sensor current on the FALCO UAV, being a challenge for the military to maintain the technological edge in electro-optic and IR sensors systems is a great read. The concerning area is that even with our high-tech involvement in our Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) we become, the difficulty to maintain the advantage still poses a challenge in particular environments.

Wescam MX10 display GUI is far beyond the tech I was accustomed to operating the 1980’s developed OH-58D Kiowa. With all the functionality in the FALCO, does it become overwhelming to operate these systems in their most optimal nature? Certainly you’d learn how and what works best for any given situation but I wonder if you’d be able to recommend obsolete capabilities to reduce cost or rather keep them for unknown circumstances? Particularly, operating the mast mounted sight’s Thermal Imaging Sensor or Video wouldn’t be as useful in day operations, however quite critical at night.

The acquire-on-the-move function in the airframe is similar to the next-gen system you’ve referenced to ID hostiles. I do believe there is more improvement in the upcoming tech in relation. It does make me feel more comfortable knowing that future generations will be outfitted with the most advanced technology, sensory systems and payloads to employ military force.

Nice work on this information,

Michael

Response: Michael, I agree with the latest technology out on the street, the MX-10 is pretty old technology. We normally have to stay below 10,000 ft MSL to get quality video and images. At higher altitudes the MX-10 suffers from moisture problems causing the video and images to be of very low quality. Night operations we basically can see heat signatures of humans and fires around campsites and that’s about it. At higher altitudes it is almost impossible to determine if a “bad guy” has a weapon. The MX-10 can basically see that it is a human, animal, or campsite and that’s about all. The MX-15 with HD would be the optimal sensor to have on the legacy FALCO. The only problem is the weight. The UAV could carry it but you would have to download fuel and decrease stations times to carry the MX-15.