24 août 2020 | International, Aérospatial, C4ISR, Sécurité
To support the approval of “Tactical Beyond Visual Line of Sight” operations, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a guide to TBVLOS waivers, aimed at first responders with emergency drone operations. The FAA introduced TBVLOS to support drone operations which take place away from busy locations and where the safety case can be supported by factors such as a particular location or application.
In a time of extreme emergencies to safeguard human life, first responders require the capability to operate their unmanned aircraft (UAS) beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) to assess the operational environment such as a fire scene at a large structural fire, to conduct an aerial search on a large roof area for a burglary in progress, or to fly over a heavily forested area to look for a missing person (see diagram below for a visual perception). To support public UAS operators acting in an active first responder capacity, the FAA may approve “First Responder Tactical Beyond Visual Line of Sight” (TBVLOS) waivers to 14 CFR 91.113(b).
These temporary BVLOS flights are flown to both reduce risk to first responders and to ensure the safety of the communities they serve. The FAA will issue in advance, upon receipt of a complete and accurate application, a 14 CFR 91.113(b) waiver that will allow temporary UAS TBVLOS operations within specific conditions and requirements. These requirements are listed in the guidance document, along with the application and approval process.
The guide can be accessed here: https://www.faa.gov/uas/public_safety_gov/public_safety_toolkit/media/TBVLOS_Waiver_Final.pdf
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29 avril 2021 | International, Aérospatial
A recent internal study shows more than nine out of 10 repairs performed by the defense industry on U.S. Air Force aircraft are by a sole-source vendor, the service’s top logistics official said on April 28.
18 septembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial
Le groupe français SECAPEM créé en 1957 et la société américaine Cubic Global Defense ont signé un accord cadre de partenariat afin d'enrichir leurs offres pour l'entrainement des forces armées. Les deux entreprises ont lié leurs expertises afin de proposer une gamme complète de solutions pour l'entrainement des forces armées. Les clients français et américains pourront ainsi bénéficier de solutions complémentaires en intégrant les systèmes d'entrainement au tir réel de SECAPEM et la capacité de travail aérien de type "RedAir" de sa filiale SDTS, couplés aux solutions de simulation développées par Cubic. SDTS (Secapem Defence Training Solutions) est une filiale dédiée aux missions de service aérien. Elle peut déployer ses équipes et sa flotte d'avions rapides sur une large gamme de missions de travail aérien répondant aux besoins d'externalisation des prestations d'entraînement opérationnel des armées. Les avions de SDTS seront très bientôt équipés des pods CUBIC pour réaliser des missions de RedAir avancées. Selon SECAPEM, ce partenariat permettra "de proposer une offre globale intégrant tous les maillons de la chaine capacitaire de l'entrainement des Forces Armées tout en renforçant leurs présences respectives sur les marchés américain et français". http://lignesdedefense.blogs.ouest-france.fr/archive/2019/09/11/secapem-20448.html
21 octobre 2020 | International, Aérospatial, C4ISR
Rachel S. Cohen The Air Force is in the market for upgrades to its counter-drone technologies, according to an Oct. 16 request for information posted on a federal contracting website. The service is in the early stages of deploying lasers, microwaves, and other weapons more advanced than a shotgun to deal with potentially threatening drones loitering around bases. In particular, the RFI is looking for ideas to fend off the smallest unmanned aerial systems like quadcopters. “These threats may have characteristics such as small size, low radar cross-sections, low infrared or radio frequency signatures (or no RF signatures), ability to hover, and low-altitude flight capability, which may render them difficult to detect and/or defeat,” the Air Force stated. “These UAS are typically either controlled remotely from a ground control station or capable of flying pre-planned routes.” Cheap aircraft can be turned into battlefield weapons when modified to drop hand grenades, and they can spy on military installations or heavily damage jets if sucked into an engine. American military officials have warned for years that small drones pose a pervasive threat to troops in the Middle East. Over the next year, the Air Force wants to pursue updates to counter-drone command-and-control, radar, and electronic warfare systems related to directed-energy weapons. It's soliciting concepts in 12 areas from lethality to crunching weather data. Responses are due Nov. 17. For instance, the service suggests automating the process of targeting, tracking, and shooting at an incoming drone instead of relying as heavily on a human operator. “At a minimum, the ideal configuration is for [a high-energy laser] system to have its beam director/optics automate all steps between acquisition, tracking, aimpoint selection, and only requires a human to interact with it through final approval to fire from operator/battle commander,” the RFI said. The service also considers being able to compile and send reports with the details of drone threats and conflicts to other units, which could give the military a better understanding of an enemy in a particular area. Pentagon researchers are looking into several different counter-UAS system designs spanning the weapons themselves to the subsystems that point and shoot them. The Air Force is currently testing high-powered lasers and microwaves overseas while it takes less-destructive approaches—like using gun-fired nets to trap quadcopters—in the continental U.S. https://www.airforcemag.com/usaf-scoping-out-upgrades-to-counter-uas-weapons/