GPS-driven dropsondes improve airdrop accuracy

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class David Clark
  • Air Force News Agency
ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (AFNEWS) --  An emerging technology is making airdrops around the world more accurate. Called dropsondes, they not only improve aircrew capabilities, they also keep troops safe downrange.

"A dropsonde is merely a meteorological device that we use to collect weather information from the altitude of the plane to the surface," said Maj. Daniel DeVoe, the chief of Air Mobility Command's mobile training team.

"Once we get that information, the navigator on board the aircraft will recalculate a release point for the cargo, based on the new weather information," said Capt. Andrew Purath, training mission commander. 

In the past, aircrews had to depend on other means for weather information, Captain Purath said.

"Previously, we had to rely on either forecast weather or what people were reading on the ground," he said. "Until now we didn't have a good idea of what was going on with the winds all the way to the ground."

"The dropsonde gives us a better understanding of what winds are doing at the time we release the cargo," said Tech. Sgt. Steven Hayes, a C-130 Hercules combat tactics loadmaster. "With this data, the cargo is given the optimal chance of reaching where it needs to be for the troops on the ground."

The benefits for these troops on the ground go beyond the accuracy of the drop, through the use of Global Positioning System technology, to help aircrews make more accurate airdrops, said Capt. Dale Stanley, a C-130 navigator.

"If we can get the load closer to the team on the ground, especially in a combat environment, it keeps them from having to put themselves in danger," he said.

In the end, that is what the dropsonde project is all about: accomplishing the mission and coming home safely.

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