4.4 - Research Blog 3: Unmanned Aerospace Systems

Unmanned Aerospace Systems

With the popularity and success of both the Air Force’s Predator B and the Army’s’ Gray Eagle, Remotely Powered Aircraft (RPA), it was just a matter of time before other agencies entered in to the industry. And the small budget United States Coast Guard was no acceptation. The U.S. Coast Guard is the leading law enforcement agency on the high seas and each year the organization conducts thousands of search and rescue and law enforcement missions. For over forty years the Coast Guard has utilized helicopters on the back of Coast Guard cutters to carry out those missions. Now, the Coast Guard has a new weapon in its arsenal, the Scan Eagle.

 ScanEagle

The ScanEagle manufactured by Insitu, a subsidiary of Boeing, is a highly capable and effective Medium-Range unmanned aircraft system (MR-UAS) that effectively meets the Cast Guard mission. One requirement the Coast Guard was looking for was the ability to have a sUAS be launched from a Coast Guard Cutter at sea. Launching and recovering of the ScanEagle is carried out by way of catapult launch and net recovery of the MR-UAS.

 
Figure 1. ScanEagle launch/recovery platform. Retrieved from USCG. 

Figure 2. ScanEagle Recovery net. Retrieved from USCG. 

The ScanEagle can be setup up as a Cutter- based sUAS platform or a land based sUAS platform using the unique launch/recovery system. That where the uniqueness of the ScanEagle comes in to play. The ScanEagle is launched using a catapult system that can then be converted into a recovery net system.
Figure 3. Scan Eagle Launch. Retrieved from USCG. 

The Coast Guard began operational assessment patrols with the ScanEagle UAS on the National Security Cutter (NSC) Stratton in February 2017 (USCG, 2918). Since deploying UAS on NSCs, the Coast Guard has seen a vast increase in mission effectiveness. Cutter-based MR-UAS may be outfitted with electro-optical/infrared cameras, high-resolution daytime cameras, and visual detection and ranging surface surveillance sensors. (USCG, 2018)The UAS are outfitted with standard Identification, Friend or Foe and Automatic Identification System receivers.

The ScanEagle made an instant impact once implemented. The sUAS deployed off of the Coast Guard Cutter Stratton assisted with multiple drug interdictions during the ship’s most recent deployment, which included the seizure of five suspected smuggling boats in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Stratton’s success was part of a larger international effort between U.S. and Canadian forces that netted more than 47,000 pounds of cocaine, worth over $721 million, which was offloaded in San Diego Jan. 25, 2018 (USCG, 2018)

Specs

Specs and features of the ScanEagle include a maximum endurance of 24 hours, a flight ceiling of 19,500 ft., and a max speed of eighty knots, with a cruise speed of fifty to sixty knots. The engine can be operated with either gasoline of heavy fuel (JP-5 or JP-8) that is readily available on military ships. The ScanEagle weighs between thirty to forty pounds empty and has a max takeoff weight of 48 pounds (USCG, 2018). The wingspan of the ScanEagle is just 10.2 and the fuselage is just five and a half feet long. The ScanEagle can be equipped with an array of electro-optical or infrared sensor payloads to support the Coast Guard many missions.

Conclusion

I believe that this is an outstanding platform for the Coast Guards missions. The Coast Guard does not have the budget nor the infrastructure that the Department of Defense agencies have and this is the solution to the mission needs. The ScanEagle can be launched and recovered easily, is much less to operate that the Organizations’ aircraft and eliminates the risk to human pilot and crewmembers flying those manned aircraft. Moving forward, I see nothing bit success for the Coast Guard with this program.

References 

United States Coast Guard. (2018). Unmanned Aircraft System. Retrieved from https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Acquisitions-CG-9/Programs/Air-Programs/UAS/

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