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Fine-tuning flying skills between manned aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) requires the right mix of infrastructure and airspace, and Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 22 found both at Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MARS UAS) Airfield and Runway.
The squadron flew more than 105 hours at the MARS UAS Airfield and NASA Wallops Flight Facility from Feb. 21 – March 6 as part of pre-deployment training for various detachments within their squadron. The MARS UAS Airfield consists of a 3,000-foot-long, 75-foot-wide runway available to the government and commercial aircraft for use.
The Norfolk, Virginia-based squadron flies the MH-60S Knighthawk manned utility helicopter, as well as the MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned helicopter.
Each flight conducted during the training provided HSC-22 aviators the ability to conduct the Airborne Use of Force in conjunction with the U.S. Coast Guard, including Counter Narcotic Training (CNT) and qualifications with members from the USCG Deployable Specialized Forces (DSF) Airborne Use of Force (AUF) Division out of Miami, FL.
The pre-deployment work-ups are for the upcoming joint service (USCG/USN) counter drug deployments onboard the Freedom-Class Littoral Combat Ships USS Detroit and USS Little Rock.
“The training conducted at Wallops greatly exceeded our expectations mainly with support from NASA, MARS UAS team members, and U.S. Coast Guard service members,” said Lt. Cmdr. Kerwin Post, HSC-22 detachment officer-in-charge. “We were able to complete 100 percent of our MQ-8B training requirements and 81 percent of our MH-6S requirements to ready our detachments for their upcoming deployment well ahead of schedule.”
The MARS UAS Runway provided the proper infrastructure, briefing, and maintenance facilities for HSC-22’s two MH-60S helicopters and MQ-8B Fire Scout. The MARS UAS Runway and Airfield within NASA Wallops Island Flight Facility were essential requirements for HSC-22 to operate the MQ-8B Fire Scout.
“The Fire Scout and MH-60s working concurrently can provide a full-time recognized maritime picture to higher authority in a very efficient manner,” said Post. “It gave the crews real-world experiences in operating both the MQ-8B and the MH-60S in a realistic battle rhythm.”
| Date Taken: | 03.19.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.19.2020 13:14 |
| Story ID: | 365515 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 167 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, HSC-22 Increases Lethality of Manned and Unmanned Forces at MARS UAS Runway, by CPO Michael Cole, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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