Breaking News - Greater Yuma Economic Development Corporation

YPG Developing into Unmanned Aircraft Testing Hub

Jul. 5th, 2010
Mark Schauer

The great blue yonder is not an isolated locale. A busy airport at a major city in America routinely hosts 1,500 takeoffs and landings in a single day. Rigid adherence to the air traffic control system permits this vital network to proceed with few incidents, but negates the spirit and ability to leap into the next epoch of air travel: refinement of unmanned aerial systems (UAS), which are pilotless craft controlled autonomously. “UAS testing is one of the most diverse commodity areas we have,” said Mary Beth Weaver, lead test director for UAS testing at Yuma Proving Ground's Aviation Systems Branch. “We test everything from one-pound platforms to very large platforms that weigh more than a ton.” YPG's vast size of nearly 2,000 square miles of restricted airspace is used by testers at YPG's aviation systems branch to test UAS, the pilotless aircraft that can conduct surveillance and attack enemy targets. The clear, stable air and extremely dry climate where inclement weather is a rarity, as well as YPG's isolation from urban encroachment, make it highly coveted. “We have a low-density altitude, which translates into enhanced engine performance,” said Pat Franklin, a test director for the aviation systems branch. “We also have a natural terrain bowl surrounded by high terrain on three sides, which keeps weapons, laser emissions and radio frequency energy from propagating out and disturbing anything outside of the proving ground.” More interestingly, this testing takes place across all stages of the development cycle. “We have a very diverse customer base with many different test objectives,” said Weaver. “On a given day we might be working on a command and control system while at the same time supporting another customer who is developing a new airframe. There are no cookie-cutter tests here.” History Small aircraft drones have played a role in Army training since World War II. “A lot of people don't realize that UAS testing has been ongoing at Yuma Proving Ground for over 40 years,” said Franklin. In the latter 1970s, construction started on a site for a vertical lift UAS testing site, which began as a 250-foot-square asphalt landing pad and a lone double-wide trailer that served as a command center. Over the years, the size of the pad was doubled and an airstrip was added to accommodate fixed-wing air vehicles, four additional UAS shelters were constructed, an additional trailer was brought in and a large earthen berm was added to shield the command center from tests involving weapons fires as the next decade brought efforts to weaponize what had previously been platforms that were meant only for surveillance. Testing and training In the recent past, a number of unmanned aircraft have undergone testing at YPG, from the Boeing A160 Hummingbird, to the Northrop-Grumman Fire Scout, Shadow and Hunter. Like their manned cousins, UAS must be able to fly stably while supporting functioning sensors and accurate weaponry, and YPG is always busy testing the machines' ability to do this and more. Testers have to take into account a variety of effects of firing a missile, most notably the thermal and blast overpressure effects of firing and how it impacts the aircraft's sensors and the ability of the aircraft to maintain control of the system. The data needed to make such a determination includes measurements of pressure, temperature and vibration, all of which require sophisticated measurement instrumentation. Test fires are a complex business under any circumstance, but particularly with an unmanned system. One recent test on a vertical lift UAS required test officers to construct a three-story tower and tether the running craft's landing gear to the top, after which the test rocket was loaded using a cherry picker bucket. Tests taking place early in the development cycle might simply mount the gun tube to a hard stand to collect test fire data. Whether the platform is weaponized or not, YPG testers are frequently concerned with the sophisticated sensors possessed by UAS, as well as the craft's ability to sustain flight for long periods of time. YPG's testers can accommodate every phase of the developmental process. YPG's unsurpassed capabilities even allow for extensive testing of platforms that blend conventional aircraft with unmanned systems. A recent example is testing on the Block III Apache Longbow attack helicopter. The Apache platform has undergone extensive testing and integration work at YPG since the inception of the program in the early 1980s, and in its current incarnation sports the ability for the Apache gunner to control an armed, fully functional UAS. The UAS can serve as an advance scout for the helicopter and even fire on targets. “If there is a target we are observing or servicing in one area, we can send the UAS to another target, or even conduct a loitering racetrack pattern over a given area,” said Col. Jeffrey Hager, former product manager of the Longbow Apache Block III program.Another critical bonus of testing at YPG is the presence of a wealth of other infrastructure meant for other sectors of YPG's broad test mission that can be leveraged to support UAS evaluations. YPG is home to things like technical and tactical targets, as well as generator and combined maintenance shops, all of which are useful for UAS testing. YPG testers can even do cooperative tests with artillery firing. “We have the air and ground resources a customer needs to challenge their system,” said Weaver. “Flying is one thing. Once you have achieved flight, what is your purpose for flying? We have everything you need to demonstrate a platform's utility.”YPG's aviation systems branch even makes time to help support the training mission of troops about to be deployed overseas. When units from Fort Riley and Fort Drum were preparing to deploy two years ago, bad winter weather at their home posts prevented their air vehicle operators from acquiring the mandatory number of flight hours determined necessary by the Department of Defense to stay current in their skills. YPG was a logical alternative location for this critical training. UAS operators with various National Guard units have also benefited from YPG's ability to support testing and training simultaneously. Safety Most of the airspace over the United States is unrestricted. To fly their craft in unrestricted airspace, UAS developers must acquire a certificate of authorization (COA) from the Federal Aviation Administration. This is a lengthy and exhaustive process that can take months and is specific not only to the aircraft, but the specific configuration of the aircraft. Thus, if developers want to modify the UAS in response to their testing, they must get a new COA after every change. “One of the things that has always been a challenge for UAS testing is that they are only allowed to fly in the national airspace under extremely conditional situations,” explained Franklin. Achieving these stringent conditions is unrealistic for an untested UAS in the early stages of development. Additionally, an important part of the developmental process is testing worst-case scenarios. It is unlikely that the FAA would allow such testing in the national airspace. YPG's restricted airspace, on the other hand, covers miles and miles of land far from any populated area. UAS testers protect the human employees from potential dangers using similar practices in manned aviation and ground testing. “You set your surface danger zone and keep people out of the area through roadblocks and our normal standard operating procedures while an air vehicle is flying over the area,” Franklin said. “At YPG there is significant room for future site expansion,” said test officer Jerry Crump. “Other test sites don't have the combination of experience and capabilities that YPG has.” Mark Schauer writes for The Outpost, the newspaper at Yuma Proving Ground.

Mark Schauer
Special to Yuma Sun
The Sun
Jul. 5th, 2010

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