DRONE – Defence

Loading...

Taking too long?

Reload document

| Open in new tab

D R O N E
I n 1794 the French Aerostatic

Corps was established and
charged with using balloons for
reconnaissance and observation
purposes during the French
Revolutionary wars. Kept
afloat by hydrogen supplied

ADF employs
the long and
the short of it

WRITER: BARRIE BARDOE

was clear that whoever was able to get
a better view of opposition movements
would have a substantial advantage.
It was this thinking which led to
the establishment of an Australian
military aviation capability, and
when Lieutenant Eric Harrison
took to the air in a Bristol Boxkite
in March 1914 – becoming our first
military aviator – it still underpinned
military doctrine. It was envisaged
that aviation was going to be used
for what we now term intelligence,
surveillance and reconnaissance, or
ISR. In 1914, the notion of warfare
spreading to the skies was still a way
off. Fast forward to 2019 and ISR is
still a prime motivator for military
aviation. Since an aviation capability
began as a formation within Army, it
is perhaps fitting that they have been
enthusiastic adopters of Unmanned

by portable units, this cutting edge
new capability made its debut at the
Battle of Fleurus on June 26 1794
when the army of the First French
Republic confronted a combined army
of soldiers from Britain, Hanover, the
Dutch Republic and the Hapsburg
Monarchy. The French won what
seemed like an unlikely victory, and
what gave them the edge was their
balloon “L’Entrepenant” which played
an influential role spotting enemy
positions. The corps became celebrities
and appear on postcards from the era.
Warfare had changed forever and it

Understated power: Army
Corporal Doug Coombs from the
2nd 14th Light Horse Regiment
(Queensland Mounted Infantry)
prepares to launch a Wasp AE
UAV. defence

56 AUSTRALIAN AVIATION

D E F E N C E

A commemorative postcard
showing the L’Entrepenant
observation balloon at the
Battle of Fleurus.
french aerostatic corps/
wikipedia

ADF UAS

‘It’s easy to be a
huge advocate
when you are
inspired by this
scenario at work
every day’

LTCOL KEIRIN JOYCE

Aerial Systems (UAS) or “drones” as
they tend to be known colloquially.
Army currently has around 1,000
drones and operators and, according
to Lieutenant-Colonel Keirin Joyce
who is the Army Drone Sub-Program
Manager, it is Australia’s biggest,
most experienced and safest drone
user. Described as the “messiah” of
the military drone capability by a
colleague, Joyce has the statistics
to back up Army’s claim to be the
nation’s preeminent drone operator.
Currently there are three systems
in service, with two in use. These
cover specialised and non-specialised
applications, as well as providing
a recreational outlet – Army fields
a drone racing team in the
national competition.

Lieutenant Colonel Joyce’s passion
for the technology is infectious. “I used

australianaviation.com.au 57

to be a helicopter maintenance guy,” he
explains. “Blackhawk was my thing.”
But then he was offered the
opportunity to join the startup
formation for the drone capability
in 2006.

“I was the first UAS engineer and
have remained in the UAS field. Why?
Big bang for buck on investment, high
rates of tech refresh and development,
safer soldiers, better effectiveness for
Army missions – It’s easy to be a huge
advocate when you are inspired by this
scenario at work every day!”

Army’s drones are a diverse bunch.

The “Black Hornet” is like a tiny,
hand-held helicopter that can be
operated by an individual soldier who
may want to know if bad guys are
lurking someplace out of sight.
The “Wasp AE” is more like

a remotely controlled model
aircraft, while the “Shadow 200”
is larger, again providing a much
wider “picture” of the warfighting
environment. Interestingly Army
now has drones in every unit with a
strong emphasis on training, “drone
literacy” and even experimentation
in their applications. Joyce has also
presented on new and alternate uses
for drones which can include logistics
and “pseudo satellites” which could
stay aloft for more than 40 days at
altitudes as high as 70,000 feet! The
possibilities seem endless.

An important issue is how
such a diverse drone fleet and its
operations can be kept safe. “All
Army UAS operations are governed
by DASA – the Defence Aviation
Safety Authority”, states Joyce. DASA
implements regulations which govern
UAS operations and align with CASA
and international standards.

“These regulations describe all
Fundamental Inputs to Capability to
a flying capability and are distilled
down to each fleet of UAS,” says
Joyce. “For systems like the Shadow
200 (a nine hour, 100km, 200kg air
vehicle) this is a full suite of aviation
systems including an established
trade, a five month training regime,
a UAS Operating Permit, and so
forth. For systems like the Nano UAS
Black Hornet (a 25min, 2km, 33g air
vehicle) any soldier can undertake
this five days of training, and those
operators only have to know two
governance documents: the operator
handbook and a short Authority to
Operate instruction.”

Wing Commander Nick Dyce-
McGowan from the Airworthiness
Coordination and Policy Agency
within DASA articulates the ADF’s

58 AUSTRALIAN AVIATION

Australian Army Trooper
Sam Menzies with the tiny
PD-100 Black Hornet Nano
unmanned aircraft vehicle,
and in close-up (below).
defence

comprehensive approach to making
sure drone operation is done safely:
“UAS are regulated in a very similar
manner to civilian Remotely Piloted
Aircraft Systems.

“Indeed, the civil and military safety

regulations for these systems share a
number of similarities. For the larger
aircraft-like systems, we manage
them in a very similar way to a normal
aircraft: we have engineering and
maintenance standards and controls,
operator training requirements, and
specific operating procedures that
provide assurance of safe operations.
For the smaller systems, we have
regulations that allow low-risk/low
complexity operations under a number
of Standard Operating Conditions
(or Standard Scenarios) and an Open
Category with strict compliance
requirements for a number of different
weight categories such as micro UAS
(less than 100 grams); very small UAS
(100 grams up to 2kg) and small UAS
(2kg-25kg).

“All UAS operations are required to

be specifically approved through the
chain of command with the approver
being responsible for ensuring
that the activity is conducted in
accordance with Defence’s regulatory
requirements. This will often include
specific controls for remaining clear of
the general public: buildings; critical
infrastructure’ and may extend as far
as operating only in airspace managed
by Defence and over land owned or
controlled by Defence. Ultimately,
our aim is to make our operations as
safe as possible while still enabling

the ADF to achieve its operational
objectives.”

Army also operates helicopters
and some may wonder if there is a
possibility that one of these micro
drones in the Open Category could
be sucked into an engine during
exercises or operations. Joyce points
out that the downward thrust of the
rotor blades would make this pretty
much impossible but, supposing it did
happen, engineers and regulators are
well and truly across it. The engines
are designed to incur no damage as
they turn it into confetti.

“At the very small end of drone size

is the Black Hornet Nano UAS,” says
Joyce. “DASA’s regulations for UAS
classify this as a micro class (less than
100g), and our classification scheme
is aligned to CASA and the European
Aviation Safety Authority frameworks,
allowing us to talk a common

‘The Black
Hornet is
like a tiny,
hand-held
helicopter
that can be
operated by
an individual
soldier’

language. The micro class have such
a small mass, and subsequent kinetic
energy, that they can essentially cause
no harm to a human on the ground or
other flying aircraft. As such, we have
almost no operating regulation of this
class of system – we can fly it pretty
much anywhere, even around airports
and low altitude aircraft.”

There has been much talk in
the media recently of Air Force
plans to acquire drones that can be
“weaponsied” and we will look at that
shortly. But for Army this is not an
issue. “Army has no weaponised UAS”,
says Joyce, “nor have any approved
projects to acquire them. We are
closely following development of these
systems by threat forces and academia
and coalition partners.”

From the Army perspective
drones are a force multiplier that
make their soldiers’ lives safer and
better. “UAS make soldiers safer,
removing them from some of their
dangerous situations, and make
Army commanders and teams more
effective,” says Joyce.

“Soldiers are safer because they
can send a UAS down a street, into
an intersection or over a hill to have
the first look, instead of a soldier –
soldiers are safer today because of our
UAS projects. Army is more effective
because the images and data allow
better, quicker decisions to be made by
our mission commanders.”

Army’s love of drones doesn’t end
when soldiers clock off for the day –
at least not for some. The Army has

‘UAS are
regulated in
a very similar
manner
to civilian
Remotely
Piloted
Aircraft
Systems’

WGCDR NICK DYCE-MCGOWAN

A rendering in RAAF livery
of the MQ-4C Triton that
the force plans to operate
in a mainly maritime
surveillance role.
northrop grumman

ADF UAS

a drone racing team that competes
in the national competition. “Army
soldiers drone race”, says Joyce. “Just
like Army supports it’s people in their
afterhours pursuits, such as traditional
sports like rugby and cricket, we want
to support contemporary pursuits such
as drone racing, cyber-sports, e-sports,
war-gaming, and so on.

“Our Army Drone Racing Team

soldiers fly regularly in their local
areas and clubs, and come together
a few times a year to fly for Army. A
direct spin-off of this is being able to
have a conversation with STEM kids:
drone racing involves design, coding,
soldering, electronics, mechanics,
aerodynamics, 3D printing, radio
datalinks and multi-media creation.
These kids are exactly the kind of
people we want in Defence.

“Like flying drones? You can do

that in Army full time flying the
Shadow 200, part-time in the infantry,
cavalry or special operations flying the
Black Hornet or Wasp AE, or just for
fun in the Drone Racing Team. Air
Force also have a Drone Racing Team,
who we fly with, and beat, regularly.”
Air Force may need to lift its game

in drone racing but they have plenty
of operational experience. The IAI
Heron UAS provided excellent ISR
outcomes in support of coalition forces
in Afghanistan, clocking up thousands
of hours of flight time. It also starred
at the Australian International
Airshow at Avalon where it was one of
the most popular exhibits, especially
with younger punters who queued
to gain access to its control interface
which was situated in something that
looked a bit like a shipping container.
This mobile “cockpit” allowed the
general public to see how the Heron
was operated and reinforced’ the
fact that it was piloted just like any
other Air Force aircraft, and in fact
the pilots chosen for this task were
highly experienced and used to the
sometimes complex airspace and
airbase conditions it operated in. The
type was retired from use in 2017.

Looking ahead, the Air Force plans

to operate the Northrup Grumman
MQ-4C Triton which is as large as a
commercial aircraft and will be used
primarily in the maritime ISR role.
Described as a high altitude long
endurance (HALE) aircraft, it can
support missions up to an incredible
24 hours and its sensor equipment
offers a 360 degree view for up to
2,000 nautical miles.

It is envisaged that at least six
Tritons will operate out of RAAF
Base Edinburgh near Adelaide with

australianaviation.com.au 59

even “reconnaissance” became a
lot less interesting to a media that
thrives on sensationalism.

However as he pointed out, “the

aircraft will be operated under
the same laws of armed conflict,
international human rights law
and rules of engagement as
manned aircraft”.

From an ethical perspective there

is no difference between how an
armed UAS will be used and a piloted
aircraft that delivers ordnance to a
nominated target.

The Shadow 200 UAV takes off
for a mission at the Shoalwater
Bay Training Area as part of
Exercise Hamel in 2018. defence

The General Atomics MQ-9
Reaper set for introduction
into service by the mid-2020s.
aa archive

“Remotely piloted aircraft allow
military commanders to make more
informed decisions faster whilst
providing the option to conduct
strike and reconnaissance operations
without risking the safety of aircrew,”
said the then Minister.

Discussion of the ethics of
conducting war in the first place
is beyond the scope of this piece
but military members are always
interested in technology that gives
them a better chance of going
home unscathed and finishing the

ADF UAS

the first going into service in 2023
and the full complement expected to
be operational by 2025. Considering
Australia’s vast ocean territories,
the RAAF has its work cut out and
it is envisaged that the Triton will
operate alongside the Poseidon P-8A
fleet which replaced the much loved
AP-3C Orions. Its great benefit is its
ability to stay airborne for long periods
without aircrew fatigue but like the
Heron, it will be flown by qualified
and experienced pilots from a ground
location. The information it gathers
can then be analysed by relevant
experts. Incursions into our maritime
territory will be that much more
challenging as a result.

Another purchase which has seen

some elements of the mainstream
media getting a little overwrought is
the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper.
“The Government is also aiming to
deliver 12 to 16 MQ-9s. Approval for
acquisition is scheduled for 2021-
2022 with a planned introduction
into service by the mid-2020s,”
stated a Defence spokesperson. It
will be Australia’s first “armed” drone
and when Christopher Pyne MP
mentioned the word “firepower” words
like “intelligence”, “surveillance” and

60 AUSTRALIAN AVIATION

Naval ground crew
prepare the Schiebel S-100
Camcopter UAS for flight
at Jervis Bay Airfield, NSW.
defence

unpleasant business of war as soon
as possible. It is expected that the
Reaper will undertake a wide range
of missions, including ISR, search
and rescue and provide support to
humanitarian relief operations.

Also on the horizon is the aircraft
sized, jet fighter-like UAS developed
by Boeing in conjunction with the
Australian Department of Defence.
Its official title is the Boeing Airpower
Teaming System, or BATS (an
amusing aviation acronym if ever
there was one). It has also been
referred to, unofficially, as the ‘Loyal
Wingman’. It is the first time Australia
has developed an aircraft that might
be used in a combat role since World
War II and represents Boeing’s biggest
investment in such a system outside
of the USA. A mockup of the aircraft
was unveiled at the 2019 airshow at
Avalon and it is expected to begin
flight testing in Australia next year.
The aircraft is envisaged as being able
to undertake a wide range of missions
including ISR, but will also be able
to be used to shield manned assets
such as the Lockheed Martin F-35A
Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters and
Boeing E-7A Wedgetail early warning
and control (AEW&C) aircraft.

This relatively low-cost approach

to protecting high value, manned
assets informs the thinking of UAS
stakeholders globally and it is expected
that the aircraft will become an export
commodity – a big turnaround for a
local industry that had ceased making

military aircraft decades ago. It should
also be noted that Air Force is testing
UAS for a diverse range of applications
including aircraft maintenance to gain
aerial views of aircraft surfaces – as
well as air base safety and security.

Navy has also embraced UAS. Late
in 2018 the Naval Unmanned Aircraft
Systems Unit formally transitioned
to 822X Squadron making it the
fourth squadron in the Fleet Air
Arm. The Squadron operates the
Insitu ScanEagle which is a small,
low altitude and high endurance
aircraft, and the Schiebel S-100
Camcopter which can carry a range of
sophisticated sensor and surveillance
equipment. As with the other services
this capability increases ISR outcomes
and reduces risk to personnel.

‘It is the
first time
Australia has
developed
an aircraft
that might
be used in a
combat role
since World
War II’

The Aeryon SkyRanger
unmanned aerial system.
defence

As regulators for ADF aviation the

Defence Aviation Safety Authority
(DASA) is heavily involved with
the UAS capability and recently
held a symposium intended to
bring together a diverse range of
Defence UAS stakeholders to share
information and experience. Major
Glenn Pinnuck who works with
Wing Commander Dyce-McGowan
at the Airworthiness Coordination
and Policy Agency within DASA
was the Activity Coordinator for
the symposium.

“The symposium provided an
ideal forum where key stakeholders
could discuss common aviation
safety practices and procedures,
exchange ideas, build networks,
improve UAS community knowledge
and to enable many ADF agencies
to collectively discuss and exploit
emerging UAS capabilities,” he said.
It is hoped that the symposium

will become a regular feature
and continue the process of cross
pollination between the various UAS
operators and stakeholders.

For now, UAS enthusiasts
may want to ponder the words of
Lieutenant Colonel Joyce when
he states that “Army is Australia’s
biggest, most experienced and
safest operator of drones, and will
be until companies like Amazon or
Uber crack their commercial market
concepts.”

The French Aerostatic Corps of
1794 would no doubt be delighted.

australianaviation.com.au 61