PILOTING A DRONE

PIONEER journalist Koh Eng Beng goes on board a Missile Corvette (MCV) to fly the ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).

When I was told to test out the ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, I was gleefully excited because this would probably be my first and only chance to fly a plane in my lifetime.

The plan was for me to launch the ScanEagle UAV on board RSS Vigour, a Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) MCV, during a three-day sail.

But before that, I had to go through training on a UAV ground control simulator. My instructor was Military Expert (ME) 2-2 Eric Oh, a UAV supervisor, who had the unenviable task of trying to squeeze a 10-week syllabus into a three-hour crash course.

Through the session, I learnt that operating the ScanEagle UAV is just like flying a commercial plane: conduct a preflight check, take off, switch to autopilot, and land. The preflight check was mind-boggling, with over a hundred steps to be completed sequentially.

"Verify AC Power and Shore Power Connection"
"Verify Wing Video Transmitter"
"Initiate Launch Sequence"

I struggled to understand the checklist shown on the simulator screen. So ME2-2 Oh did most of the tasks while I observed. He then walked me through the process of plotting the flight path and controlling the camera.

The real deal

Two weeks later, I went on board RSS Vigour with the UAV operators from 188 Squadron (SQN). Since I had fiddled - and struggled - with the preflight checks during the simulator training, I went out to the ship deck to be a ground crew member.

In the RSN, all UAV operators are cross-trained, and they take on the roles of the pilot and ground crew on a rotational basis.

With the ground crew, I opened up the container which stored the components of the ScanEagle UAV, fixed the wings onto its body, and carried the assembled unmanned system to the launcher. It was a challenge balancing the 20kg UAV on my shoulder when the ship was swaying because of the choppy sea conditions. And I could truly feel the full weight of the ScanEagle UAV's six-digit price tag!

After the preflight check was completed, it was show time. As I knelt behind the ScanEagle UAV, now resting on the launcher, I could see its propeller spinning faster and faster, and hear its engine revving louder and louder.

My heart went into overdrive; I was a bundle of nerves. What if I screwed up? After 10 minutes of waiting in agony under the scorching sun, the lead ground crew, ME2-2 Jackie Thang, passed me a green rope.

The moment had come - I gave the rope a hard tug, and in a split second, the launcher catapulted the UAV into the blue sky.

After the successful launch, I went to the UAV Ground Control Station (GCS) located in the Combat Information Centre of the MCV.

There, UAV pilot ME2-2 Eric Fong showed me the live video feed of RSS Vigour in full colour - captured by the camera on board the ScanEagle UAV. The UAV camera was pointing at our ship - from over 3km away.

I then tried out the joystick which controls the camera, which could pan left and right and zoom in. I also got to plot a new flight path for the UAV. Easy stuff. But only because I got to concentrate on one task at a time. A real UAV pilot not only has to juggle all these tasks simultaneously, but also monitor the multiple on-screen instruments.

Recovery

After an hour of flight, I was out on the deck again where the ground crew had set up the sky hook recovery system - a snagging line suspended from a 15m boom. It was time to recover the ScanEagle UAV.

I shadowed ME2-2 Ricky Tan, a recovery observer. When the UAV pilot in the GCS gives the go-ahead for the ScanEagle UAV to make its final approach, ME2-2 Tan would press and hold a "Clear To Land" switch until the UAV is recovered.

If at the last moment, the UAV is wobbling or blown off course by a sudden strong gust of wind, he has to release the switch. The ScanEagle UAV would then make a sharp right turn away from the ship to avoid a crash.

We stood at the edge of the deck to observe the ScanEagle UAV making its final approach, and in just a few seconds, it flew right into the snagging line. A hook in the left wing tip caught onto the line, suspending the UAV in mid-air.

It was a thrilling experience to fly the ScanEagle UAV from out at sea, despite my struggles with the technical aspects. But since I have acquired some experience, perhaps the Navy could send me for formal training. I will gladly serve my remaining In-Camp Training sessions with the UAV section at 188 SQN!

1) Moving the UAV to the launcher while enduring the choppy sea state.