“Of course I said yes!”

    
Brad Pufpaff holds the 28.5-inch-wingspan Wasp before      Jim Cherry on the stick of a Wasp. Notice the transmission
preflight and launch.                                                                      and down link antenna on the top of the truck. A BOSH
                                                                                                           employee sits in the truck watching Jim's flight on a
                                                                                                           laptop computer with an eye-in-the-sky view.       

     The Raven back-packable system features two air vehicles, or AVs, a ground-control unit, remote video terminal, transit cases, and support equipment. Two specially trained Airmen operate the Raven AV. The AV can be controlled manually or can autonomously navigate a preplanned route.
     The Wasp III UAS features the expendable air vehicle, a ground-control unit, and communications ground station. Wasp III is a collapsible, lightweight air vehicle with a two-bladed propeller driven by a small electric motor. The Wasp III is equipped with an internal Global Positioning System and Inertial Navigation System, autopilot, and two onboard cameras. The entire system can function autonomously from takeoff to recovery, or be controlled by one operator using a handheld remote-control unit.
     The official specifications for both aircraft can be found at www.af.mil/information/factsheets/index.asp.
     I was escorted by Jeff Lemasters, BOSH’s Special Operations Forces Branch Chief, the first of the many BOSH employees I would meet who impressed me with their professionalism of and seriousness about their jobs supporting our men and women in uniform. Most were former military and, surprisingly, few were modelers. Most were in full-scale aviation before their training with BOSH as SUAS pilots.
     We approached a newly renovated building near the active runway and control tower at Choctaw Field. Inside I was introduced to Brad Pufpaff, AFSOC’s SUAS Formal Training Unit Chief, who was to be my flight instructor later in the day.
     A tour of the first-class facility revealed classrooms and support areas. A visitor’s sign-in area had shields of all our armed forces on display. The facility supports SUAS operators from all branches of the military services with a variety of courses in a number of systems.
     The usual class size is 25. There are 80 hours of instruction with these systems and each student graduates with at least 15 hours of stick time. The student-to-instructor ratio is five to one during flight instruction.
     Learning to fly the airplane responsibly, as is so important in our RC world, is only one aspect of the training. Mission awareness, airspace concerns, and data and information transmission (targeting) of what is being seen out in the field to the leaders are key to a successful mission.
     Arriving at one of the flight stations, which was set up at the end of one of Choctaw Field’s closed runways, I noticed that the Navy student pilots and instructors were doing touch-and-gos in their T-34 Mentors on an active runway not far away.

  
George Levkulich (L) and Andrew McNeal operated           Jim Cherry flies the Raven with Andrew McNeal
the Raven system. The battlefield laptop computer            standing by. Brad Pufpaff photo.
displayed its flight path while McNeal's controller
allows flying either by visual line of sight or with the
"heads down" aspect of flying with either the forward-
or side-facing camera.

     I was told that our operations were separated by 1,500 feet by the Navy and AFSOC had adopted an additional 500 feet of separation for good measure. SUAS operations in Choctaw Field’s Class D airspace are conducted in compliance with an established FAA Certificate of Authorization. (The FAA has ruled that Advisory Circular 91-57, Model Aircraft Operating Standards, does not apply to systems intended for military/commercial use.)
     With the tower operational, we were ready for a systems test mission. I thought this was set up for my benefit; I was sure these guys had better things to do than entertain a visitor two days before Thanksgiving.
     My assumptions were wrong. The pride and professionalism in watching the preflight and launch spoke volumes of these individuals and their dedication in taking the time to walk me through the process. They were proud of and enjoyed what they were doing and liked sharing it with others.
     The preflight consisted of control systems check, battery check, motor run-up, and the important down link check. This followed a written checklist. A flight log was kept on each flight of the aircraft, denoting pilot, flight time, location, and other pertinent information.
     In flight, when the Wasp tilted in any direction, the gyros kicked in the control surfaces in an attempt to level the aircraft. After a few orbits of the area, AFSOC personnel offered to let me fly it.
     Let’s set the picture here: an aircraft costing more than anything else I have ever flown before, five guys all standing around who would be watching me, the weight of representing the entire modeling community on my shoulders, and by the way, what’s the punishment for destroying government property these days? Of course I said yes!
     The controller was passed to me as the aircraft was flying away (always a safe move for an instructor), and I gave the input to turn left. Nothing happened! I gave it again and by now the small Wasp was getting even smaller.
     Brad Pufpaff, my government flight instructor who is also an RCer, recognized my problem. He told me that unlike our RC systems where a small amount of input usually results in an immediate, large response, these systems were designed for nonmodelers. They are programmed to accept continuous input to make a change in direction.
     I applied full left input and held it; the Wasp responded with a gradual, wings-level turn back to our location. Whew! Apply full left in nearly any RC model and hold it in, and the aircraft will be on its back in a heartbeat.
     With a few more laps around the area, it was time to come down. Landing is simple: pilot the Wasp back to you, cut the power from a minimum attitude, and glide it in.
     The Raven has a landing mode that our FF community would be proud of. The model has a programmed landing mode of kicking the elevator assembly up into a dethermalizing mode and wings that disconnect upon impact to avoid damage.
     While the aircraft is in the auto mode, the altitude adjustment up and down is done in 20-foot increments. One input equals 20 feet; two inputs equal 40 feet, and so on.
     The Wasp controller was much like an electronic game controller and the Raven even more so. The shapes of the buttons and input controls were similar to the popular games on the market today and I was told this was not a coincidence.
     At another flight station, the Raven crew was set up for launch and systems check. This aircraft has an interchangeable payload pod at the front of the aircraft.
     I did some “heads down” flying using the sun shield attached to the controller. After a short while, I was able to keep the airplane in a circular orbit around us while looking at the flight station on the ground.
     What I thought would be a two-hour tour ended up with me spending much of the day and having an opportunity to enjoy a late lunch with the BOSH crew. The camaraderie of men and women enjoying what they do made me feel honored to share this day with them.
     A special thanks to the following people who made this day one of pride and a deeper appreciation for what it takes to support our armed forces: Don Arias, Air Force Special Operations Command, Public Affairs, and Michael Gendron, Mary Esther FL. MA

  
In the Raven's waterproof backpack, the square                 A ready-for-the-field Wasp system with two aircraft
payload pod in on the left and the front section of the       and support equipment.
fuselage is on the right. Wing storage is below.

In the spirit of flight. 

Jim Cherry, Executive Director