Flying force-multiplier provides eyes forward

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Shanda De Anda
  • 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) --  A small, lightweight airborne surveillance system is paying big dividends in helping the 379th Security Forces Squadron accomplish its mission while safeguarding the Air Force’s most valuable asset -- Airmen.

The system serves as eyes forward for security forces Airmen and provides a visual of possible threats before servicemembers enter harm’s way.

“(The surveillance system) has the ability to ‘see’ threats like insurgents and possible land mines and (improvised explosive devices) and transmit that image back to the ground control station,” said Tech. Sgt. Christopher Hearn, noncommissioned officer in charge of the 379th ESFS’ force protection airborne surveillance system.

The 7-pound remote-control aircraft is primarily used for convoys, military operations in urban terrain, general reconnaissance, battle damage assessments, detecting human portable defense systems and surface-to-air missile threats, site surveys and investigating tactical automated security system alarms.

It is a force-multiplier that forecasts a threat before forces are exposed to it, increasing the available reaction time, Sergeant Hearn said.

“Instead of sending out four people to investigate something suspicious, we can send out FPASS,” said Staff Sgt. Dustin Heger, an FPASS operator. “It saves us from having to send folks out. (It) also extends the range that security forces can monitor without putting troops in imminent danger. This system is not intended to replace troops, but it is a critical surveillance tool that will protect and save lives by providing essential real-time information on potential threats.”

The system can be set up and in the air within 15 minutes. Launching the $40,000 miniature unmanned aerial vehicle requires the use of a bungee cord to help it reach a speed of 50 feet per second, at which time the engine engages.

“FPASS is powered by batteries which have a 60-minute life, records video on a mini-videocassette and transmits images in real time to the computer the controller monitors,” said Sergeant Heger who is deployed from Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.

“(It) also has the ability to transmit to a second system in a command post or in the field to help commanders make spot decisions,” said Sergeant Hearn, also deployed from Elmendorf.

Here and at other bases in the Central Command area of responsibility, the added capabilities the system provides to ground forces is not overshadowed by excessive challenges to its operation.

“The biggest challenges for FPASS here are the wind and the heat,” Sergeant Hearn said.

To help mitigate those challenges, the four-person team, keeps abreast of current weather forecasts when planning missions. As with other aircraft, the team must also file a flight plan and coordinate with the air traffic control tower before launch.

The bottom line is “we can patrol a larger area of terrain without putting human lives at risk,” Sergeant Hearn said. But the biggest reward of this job, he said, is “the fact that we can take part in the safe arrival of troops and helping to ensure the safe travel of troops to and from (forward) bases downrange.”