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380AEW Article

RPA mission encompasses skilled operators, maintainers

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Jac ob Morgan
  • 380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Early intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance missions consisted of a floating balloon or a single propeller plane flying at low altitude and a pilot using binoculars to piece together information. Today, we have aircraft flying up to 60,000 ft. for more than 20 hours at a time with high resolution sensors, no cockpit and hundreds of intelligence members piecing together information.

The future of the ISR and battlefield communications link mission is highlighted by remotely piloted aircraft, or RPAs, and the mission is only made possible with highly intelligent technology, maintainers and operators. The RQ-4 Global Hawks assigned to the 99th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron here, are maintained, launched and recovered by members of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing.

"We have two different missions, ISR and Battlefield Airborne Communication Node," said U.S. Air Force Major Matthew, 99th ERS RQ-4 Global Hawk director of operations. "We do the launches and recoveries of both types here."

The ISR mission and the BACN mission are operated out of continental U.S. Air Force bases. Satellite communications allow aircrews from those locations to remotely operate the aircraft.

Missions are planned at the home stations and input into the Global Hawk's computers by 380th HAWK AMU personnel. The aircraft has no line of sight cameras, meaning the operators are blind to surroundings besides radar and voice from ground controllers here. However, the Global Hawk is intelligent enough that if the link between operators and the Global Hawk is broken, it can finish the mission, return home, land safely on the runway and turn itself off.

The intelligence of the aircraft makes maintenance easier and more difficult at the same time, according to U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Robert, 380th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron Global Hawk Unit section chief. Typically, aircraft maintenance has two different types of jobs, mechanical and technical. The Global Hawk requires more technical expertise than a typical aircraft.

"Trouble shooting the aircraft can be much more difficult," said Robert. "We have six specialties assigned with only about 11 people on shift at any time. The systems are integrated through the computers on board rather than mechanical systems. Your battles are not all won by turning a wrench."

A mission starts with a preflight inspection where the six different specialties, such as crew chiefs, engines and avionics, all come together to inspect the Global Hawk. A typical inspection can only take 30 minutes, but when problems are found, the process gets much more in-depth.

"Mechanical problems can be easy to figure out. On an F-15 [Eagle], a throttle cable connects from the front of the jet to the engine in the back, it can be fixed by one specialty," said Robert. "The Global Hawk has a digital throttle, so now a crew chief operates the computer, electronics and environmental has to work wiring and an engine technician has to test it."

After the aircraft is cleared by maintenance crews, they tow the Global Hawk to a position on the taxiway and start the aircraft's engine.

Since the aircraft has no line-of-sight ability, a pilot in a chase car pulls up behind the aircraft while it taxis and takes off. Another pilot here starts the launch sequence from a shelter inside a hangar. Once the aircraft is out of the local airspace, pilots from the home stations take over. The sequence is of events is reversed at the end of a mission

"Flying this aircraft is similar to being in a cockpit, we are still talking to air traffic controllers and we still follow all of the same rules," said Matthew. "We need someone in the shelter, and in the chase car who understand how an airfield works. Someone needs to have situational awareness on the aircraft."

While in the air, the Global Hawk flies a pattern for sensor operators or a pattern to link communications in a certain area. A typical mission can last up to 30 hours.

"The pilot in the shelter here is in contact with approach control," said Matthew. "If they need us to divert because the runway is not open, we have to contact the aircraft and use our computer system to keep it in a holding pattern. We have to stay out of the way of other aircraft and within the right boundaries. We are unable to see and avoid, so we need to understand the traffic and radar to keep clear of other aircraft."

Once the aircraft is shut-off, maintainers tow it back and perform a post flight inspection and prep it for the next mission.