Fewer Furlough Days Page 3
Remembering Pax River Page 7
National American Miss Page 9
NAVAL AIR STATION PATUXENT RIVER, MARYLAND VOLUME 70, NUMBER 19
Celebrating 70 years of community partnership
May 16, 2013
A ‘watershed event’
Naval Air Forces Commander calls X-47B catapult launch from USS George Bush pivotal milestone in naval aviation By Jamie Cosgrove Program Executive Office Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons Public Affairs The X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator (UCASD) completed its first ever carrierbased catapult launch Tuesday from USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) off the coast of Virginia. “Today we saw a small, but significant pixel in the future picture of our Navy as we begin integration of unmanned systems into arguably the most complex warfighting environment that exists today: the flight deck of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier,” said Vice Adm. David Buss, commander of Naval Air Forces, the Navy’s “Air Boss.” The unmanned aircraft launched from the deck of George H.W. Bush at 11:18 a.m. It executed several planned low approaches to the carrier and safely transited across the Chesapeake Bay to land at Naval Air Station Patuxent River after an approximately 65-minute flight. Buss called the launch a “water-
shed event” in naval aviation and said he expects that decades from now, a future “Air Boss” will have a picture of the X-47B launching from Bush behind his or her desk just as he has a picture of aviation pioneer Eugene Ely’s first-ever landing on the deck of a ship in 1911 behind his desk today. Completing another important first for the UCAS-D program, the team demonstrated the ability to precisely navigate the X-47B within the controlled airspace around an aircraft carrier at sea and seamlessly pass control of the air vehicle from a “mission operator” aboard the carrier to one located in the Mission Test Control Center at Pax River for landing. “The flight today demonstrated that the X-47B is capable of operation from a carrier, hand-off from one mission control station to another, flight through the national airspace, and recovery at another location without degradation in safety or precision,” said Matt Funk, lead test engineer for the Navy UCAS program. Prior to the catapult launch on
Courtesy photo by Alan Radecki of Northrop Grumman
An X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator flies over the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) on May 14. George H.W. Bush is the first aircraft carrier to successfully catapult launch an unmanned aircraft from its flight deck. Tuesday, the UCAS test team also conducted deck-handling and ship-integration testing to demonstrate the capability to safely operate the X-47B in the dynamic, unforgiving environment of an aircraft carrier flight deck. “This event is a testament to the teamwork, professionalism and expertise of everyone involved with X-47B program,” said Rear Adm. Mat Winter, program execu-
tive officer for Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons. “Their work will positively impact future unmanned aviation development for years to come.” Over the next few weeks, the X47B aircraft will fly approaches to the ship multiple times and eventually land on the pitching flight deck, said Navy UCAS Program Manager Capt. Jaime Engdahl. The UCAS team will conduct
See more X-47B carrier launch photos on Page 14. additional shore-based testing with the X-47B at NAS Patuxent River in the coming months before its final carrier-based arrested landing demonstration later this summer.
NAWCAD scientists forge new path for underwater optics By Andrea Hein Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division Communications Support
Scientists from the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division recently brought to light a new approach for underwater optics that could enhance fleet activities, such as detecting underwater mines and sea floor mapping. NAWCAD engineers Linda Mullen and Alan Laux at Naval Air Station Patuxent River invented a method to encode a laser with a radar signal to improve the performance of underwater imaging systems in murky water. “We program the laser with information about how the laser is scanning the object,” Mullen said of the project, which was developed two years ago and patented in February. “Therefore, the light reflecting off the object and the surrounding environment contains all the information needed to accurately create an image.” A typical underwater laser im-
aging system has the transmitter and receiver on the same platform. Mullen and Laux tailored their imaging system by placing the transmitter and receiver on separate platforms. The remote receiver wirelessly collects the radar-encoded laser light from the transmitter and translates the information, while an image processor turns the digitized signal into an image. “It’s a new way of thinking about things,” Mullen said. “In acoustics and radar, they’ve been doing these kinds of approaches for a long time. This is very new for optics.” Their method allows for better image quality and larger operating ranges than traditional underwater optical imaging systems. With the separate platform approach, the receiver can potentially be airborne, shipboard or on another underwater stand — a first for optics imaging. It also makes it possible to use a smaller platform, which allows the light source to get closer to the object in question
U.S. Navy photo by Adam Skoczylas
Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division engineer Dr. Linda Mullen demonstrates a laser used in underwater optics at Naval Air Station Patuxent River on March 6. Mullen patented a new encoding method for laser imaging, which offers possibilities for both fleet and commercial use. without stirring up as much sediment. Less sediment means bet-
ter visibility, an important factor in activities such as minesweep-
ing, which depends on the ability to detect mines without inadvertently triggering them. Commercial uses for the technology exist as well. During one recent test, Maryland law enforcement officials expressed interest in using the technology to help with search and recovery efforts. Underwater laser imaging has the advantage of approaching objects from a single direction and has fewer limitations in shallow water than traditional sonar. “There are scenarios when you have to start thinking out of the box,” Mullen said. Otherwise, you are going to be limited. You won’t be able to get to see what you want to see.” NAWCAD is actively pursuing industry partners to assist in the commercialization of this technology. Call the NAWCAD Technology Transfer Office at 301-342-1133 to discuss opportunities to collaborate or license the technology.