Field Report 2

 Intro

    During our field outing I was able to participate as a member of a flight crew for the first time and learned many lessons only possible from experience. Since my flight crew has four members, we divided our roles into: two flight engineers, one Pilot-in-command, and one in charge of the checklist. I became the PIC and was responsible for the overall mission planning and safe flight of the drone. Prior to my flight crew’s operation, we were able to witness a successful operation of another flight crew which allowed us interesting insights. Overall the field operation provided on hands experience and second hand experience that has improved my personal understanding and my flight crew’s team efficiency. 

 Mission Environment

    The Operation Area was the Martell forest which provided the flight crew many advantages and possible hazards. The advantages of the location were: a large open area, lines of short grass, and tree line that blocked low level winds. The hazards of the location were: line of cars parked alongside road, tree lines presents many obstacles, and poles displaced through the fields. A tree had fallen since our last mission at the location and provided a new hazard. Separate from the location was the affects of weather on the mission. An eastern wind meant the catapult was placed facing the field with a pole adjacent to it. The sky was completely clear of clear of clouds or any precipitation and therefore it did not play a factor in mission planning or actual flight. The temperature was 28.6 Degrees Centigrade which is well within the aircrafts operating limitations and likely did not affect the battery duration. 

Figure 1: Flight Crew 1 Setting up the Catapult

Figure 2: Kestrel Temperature

Flight 1 Details

1. Battery Level
1. 16.4 Volts
2. Communication 
1. -28 Decibels
3. GNSS
1. 15 Satellites
4. Altitude
1. Takeoff
1. 103 ft
2. Rally
1. 60 ft
3. Parachute Deploy
1. 60 ft
5. Flight Time
1. Launch
1. 10:28 AM
2. Landing 
1. 10:41 AM

Flight 2 Details

1. Battery Level
1. 16.1 UAS
2. 13. 4 Com Box
3. 77% Tablet
2. Communication 
1. Prelaunch -30 Decibels
2. Postlaunch -60 Decibels
3. GNSS
1. 17 Satellites
4. Altitude
1. Takeoff 
1. 110 ft
2. Rally
1. 60 ft
3. Parachute Deploy
1. 60 ft

Figure 3: Flight 2 Summary

Issues Encountered 

    During both flights we encountered an Accelerometer Failure indication. The first flight crew was able to fix this issue by completing an sensor initialization in a different location. The second flight crew was able to overcome this problem by simply attempting multiple sensor initializations. Both flight crews overcome the same issue by employing different techniques and that shows there is often more than one solutions. Another issue encountered during the flight were increasing winds. The winds slowly picked up during the day and the second crew encountered stronger winds then the first crew and as a result had to adapt their mission plan to create a safe landing location.