YUMA PROVING
GROUND, Ariz. – The U.S. Army Operational Test Command completed a
limited user test of two Armed Reconnaissance Helicopters, or ARH,
on Nov. 20.
Designed to
better identify both stationary and moving enemy targets during day
and night reconnaissance missions, the modified Bell 407 aircraft
provided data on the capabilities of on-board target acquisition, or
TASS.
“The TASS allows
the ARH pilots to identify targets of military interest and
distinguish friend from foe,” said Dave Laack, a test officer for
the Aviation Test Directorate.
The subsystem
used a Forward Looking Infrared sensor known as FLIR and a color
television to recognize enemy targets for a total of eight day and
night missions during operational testing.
The helicopters
will replace the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior, a Cold War aircraft built on
an aging Vietnam vintage airframe, said George Van Riper, a test
officer with the directorate.
The test team
directed area reconnaissance missions employing a team of two of the
helicopters.
Targets included
both military and civilian vehicles, with both soldiers and
civilians posing as anti Iraqi forces.
Targets were
positioned using tactical techniques and a variety of conditions,
simulating Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.
“Each flight
mission trial lasts over an hour and a half each so we can also
determine the ARHs operational endurance,” said Laack.
Test officers
and other team members tracked all missions, both day and night, in
a range operations center where data was collected.
In addition to
the aircraft, data was collected using instrumentation located at
the Laguna Army Airfield.
“After the
mission, the pilots fill-out questionnaires pertaining to how the
ARH performs in an operational setting,” said Laack.
Data collected
is essential in assessing progress toward the integration of other
helicopter subsystems.
Experimental
test pilots from the U.S. Army Aviation Technical Test Center, Fort
Rucker, Ala., served as player-pilots for the helicopter test.
Pilots received
extensive training prior to the actual operational test.
“Missions went
quite well,” Van Riper said. “Yuma Proving Ground and the
range operations center served as an excellent test facility.”
A second limited
user test will be scheduled in 2009.