JP129 to enhance Army's ISTAR

With a source selection announced for JP129 and contract negotiations under way it shouldn't be too long before Army fields its long-overdue Tactical UAV capability.
With its introduction into service in 2008, the ADF's new Tactical UAV is planned to be one of the ground manoeuvre commander's principal ISTAR (intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaisance) assets. In this role the TUAV will be able to cue manoeuvre, offensive support and non-lethal effects by supporting the land force's targeting effort and the employment of battlegroups and combined arms teams. It will also contribute to 'knowledge edge' effects such as enhanced situational awareness and decision superiority for the supported commander.

But will the I-View 250 TUAV system, offered by Boeing Australia and selected for the JP 129 requirement, do the job? It seems that this Israeli development exceeds the ADF's requirements in a number of respects leading to its selection over other in-service systems that were proposed by ADI Limited and BAE Systems Australia. That it failed the 'in-service' test but was chosen nevertheless with Australia as launch customer must be a tribute to I-View 250's advanced capabilities.

Key features of the I-View 250 system include

* dual-redundant, fully Automated, Take Off and Landing mechanisms (ATOL) including a unique powered parafoil landing system that allows recovery in rough, confined terrain with little or no surface preparation

* multiple EO/IR payload options with the option to fit a SAR

* TCDL and EPLRS communications systems to ensure joint and coalition interoperability

* an advanced ground control station fitted to standard Army vehicles.

The combined fuel and payload weight of 81 kg accommodates all of the ADF's mission payload requirements while allowing for future mission growth. The I-View 250 air vehicle configuration offered to the ADF exceeds its requirements for range and endurance. Six to eight hour individual UAV missions at altitudes of 15,000 ft and ranges of 150 km well exceed JP129 requirements to operate at 150 km where it can remain on station for up to 2 hours.

Within the maximum payload weight of 41kg each I-View TUAV carries three on-board VHF/UHF radios (EPLRS-Microlite) and an IFF/SSR System compliant with Civil Aviation Safety Authority regulations for UAV operations in civil airspace.

Data Link Systems
The Primary Data Link provided with the I-View TUAV is the Tactical Common Data Link (TCDL) supplied by Cubic Systems. TCDL terminals provide the critical wideband data link required for real-time situational awareness, as well as real time sensor and targeting data for tactical commanders. A TCDL system consists of an Airborne Data Terminal (ADT) and a Ground or Surface Data Terminal (GDT/SDT).

TCDL is fully STANAG 7085 compliant, incorporates Type-1 link encryption, and, most importantly, provides interoperability with similarly equipped ADF and Coalition platforms. TCDL also provides embedded Airborne Data Relay (ADR) capability without the loss of payload or mission functionality. (This last was an issue of concern with the original JP 129 Operational Concepts Document (OCD) which saw a data relay capability as imposing a penalty in the size and complexity of the TUAV system. In the few years since that OCD was current, it seems that that penalty has evaporated through advances in EO technology and payload minaturisation.)

The I-View TUAV also offers dual-redundant Data Links via Raytheon's Enhanced Position Location Reporting System (EPLRS) Microlite software-defined radios. The EPLRS Secondary Data Link operates in UHF band, and provides redundancy and operational flexibility in the event that the TCDL link is jammed or inoperative.

EPLRS uses Type-1 link encryption, and provides joint and coalition interoperability through software-defined waveforms that are fully compatible with the US Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) program.

The I-View's payload capacity allows integration of the MOSP (Multi-purpose Optical Stabilised Payload) three-in-one sensor payload: the top-of-the-line Electro-Optical/Laser payload offered by IAI. MOSP sensors include a colour day TV camera; a high-resolution 3-5 µm Infra-red camera; and a laser designator and range finder (LDRF). The MOSP provides a sensor/laser capability on a par with that normally found on larger UAV systems.

(Unlike the specialised payloads of its time, MOSP was designed by IAI-Malat as a common system, with all sensors, optics and associated electronics packed on a stabilised platform in a compact 35cm ball, which could be fitted on many UAVs. Over 500 units are currently operational with various UAVs including Hunter, Searcher, Heron, Ranger, FireScout, and Hermes 450.)

For missions requiring greater fuel load and extended range or no laser designation, the I-View carries the POP 300 payload. The POP 300 combines a TV camera, 3-5 µm IFR camera, and a laser range finder in a modular, lightweight payload consisting of a turret and a sensor module or 'Slice'. The Slice is an independent, sealed line replaceable unit, which can be changed in the field by a single technician without removing the turret from the air vehicle. This allows field replacement without the requirement for follow-on sensor calibration or alignment.

Sensor payloads form the heart of any UAV system, and IAI points out that both the MOSP and POP 300 are its products used for reconnaissance and surveillance operations worldwide. The Boeing/IAI modular approach, with easily interchangeable options for MOSP, POP 300 or CCD cameras, is said to provide the flexibility to quickly modify payloads to suit mission requirements.

The I-View 250 employs a fully automated catapult launch and a fully automated, parafoil recovery system which alleviates the need for landing area preparation. The I-View also retains the option for conventional fully automated take-off and landing, thus providing redundant launch and recovery mechanisms.

The I-View GCS incorporates three independent but identical operator consoles for the Mission Commander (MC), Air Vehicle Operator (AVO) and Sensor Payload Operator (SPO). The MC, AVO and SPO functionality is interchangeable between these consoles, and single station/operator control of the I-View is possible in the event that one or two GCS consoles are unavailable.

According to Boeing, the GCS exceeds the Commonwealth requirement for GCS mobility by employing an Australian-designed, demountable GCS shelter that allows for carriage and C-130 transport while fitted to standard Army LR-110 6X6 Perentie vehicles. This C-130 roll-on/roll-off solution does not rely on trailers or dollies, minimises the GCS C-130 mobility footprint, and allows for immediate GCS deployment on ADF vehicles designed to access remote areas and rugged terrain.

We understand that an important feature of the Boeing proposal was the development of an intelligence network to transfer data from the TUAVs and which would hook into the Vigilare (AIR 5333) air defence system and associated communications network still under development by Boeing.

Boeing and IAI modelled operational scenarios at Boeing's Systems Analysis Laboratory (SAL) in Brisbane; these included reconnaissance and surveillance missions and the use of TUAVs to interact with and cue other platforms such as the Armed Reconnaissance Helicopters (ARH). Many of these scenarios were reportedly derived from modelling Boeing has done in the US to support the US Army's Future Combat System and Future Unit of Action concepts.

Future development
As Army comes to grips with this new asset and the ISTAR capabilities it offers, it would not be hard to imagine tactical commanders looking for more intelligence, including the location of hostile emitters and perhaps the ability to jam them or call on their suppression by ARH strikes.

In a paper* exploring the advantages of EW UAV systems, Saab Systems' David Ledger, who has extensive experience in UAV range extension techniques and EW trials, says the ability to deploy low-cost stealthy EW platforms into the combat environment opens up a range of new operational paradigms.

"Firstly flights of three or more ES-equipped stealthy UAVs can provide a system to instantaneously vector a threat emitter. This can provide targeting information for indirect fire weapons. Alternatively loitering EA-equipped UAVs can be tasked to barrage or spot jam individual threat emitters.

"The high mobility and endurance of these systems allows them to move with the flow of the battlefield and the stealthy characteristics dramatically improve survivability."

And after EW what about SAR/MTI payloads, and topographical/ mapping and rapid terrain visualisation packages? Can chemical and biological hazards be detected from the air and are land mine detection packages available too? JP 129's future phases look interesting!

If the I-View 250 lives up to its promise, as portrayed, then it looks like the Army has
*David Ledger, Electronic Warfare Capabilities of Mini UAVs, EW Conference, Kuala Lumpur 2002.

By Tom Muir, Canberra