In advance of the Military Helicopters 2016 Summit, July 25-27 in Enterprise, Alabama…

…we took a look at some of the most common problems for military helicopters, and what is being done about them. This is by no means an exhaustive list; it aims to provide a broad overview of the field, which you will have the opportunity to discuss in detail at the Summit with speakers such as:

5 Major Problems

With Combat Helicopters

Jon Davis Deputy Commandant for Aviation USMC

LtCol Brian Taylor CH-53E/MH-53E Integrated Program Team Lead USMC

Christopher Seymour V22 Program Manager Bell Helicopter

Doug Shidler Director of Light Tactical Helicopter Sikorsky Aircraft

Two UH-1N helicopters from the 37th Helicopter fly over Cheyenne, Wyo

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One of the less –publicized helicopter problems is the buildup of ice and slow on the fuselage, or snow/ice ingestion by the engine, which causes it to shut down. This phenomenon is responsible for several helicopter accidents in the public sector, for instance, in December of 2012, a 1992 BK117A3 operated by Air Methods for React crashed near Rochelle, Illinois, en route to picking up a patient, killing the pilot and two paramedics. “It’s a constant problem,” said Stan Rose, the Helicopter Association International’s (HAI) director of safety. “Usually you see it during the change of seasons and in a low level VFR environment. With ice you have two problems that are specific to helicopters. You are changing the

ICING

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Royal Navy Sea King Mk4 helicopter pilots and aircrews from Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) carry out a load lifting exercise as part of their Arctic flying training in Norway. Photo by: POA(Phot) Merrill/MOD, OGL

The Issue (Source) shape of the airfoil and therefore losing the efficiency of the rotor system. And helicopters are such lightweight machines that ice adds significant weight, a much higher ice weight to aircraft weight ratio than in a typical fixed-wing aircraft. It’s a nasty problem.” Rose himself had to face the issue years ago, when an inch of snow accumulated on the fuselage of Bell LongRanger fuselage in a matter of seconds and he had to break through the side window to see out. Fortunately, he was close to an airport.

What can be done about it? The FAA has already issued a revised Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SW-08-03R) covering recommendations for rotorcraft flying into snowy or icy conditions.

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The SAIB ”describes procedures to reduce the probability of an uncommanded in-flight engine shutdown due to snow and/or ice ingestion and reminds operators that most helicopters are neither equipped nor approved for flight-into-icing conditions.” At the end of the day, the pilot’s only safe choice is to land immediately. Training for a potential icing scenario should be the last line of defense, the first being upgraded systems. Some larger, newer

ICING

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A CH-47 Chinook helicopter raises a white out of blowing snow as it lands at a remote landing zone in Shah Joy district, Zabul province, Afghanistan, Feb. 8. By The U.S. Army -- Petty Officer 2nd Class Jon Rasmussen/Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force & Afghanistan Media Operations Center/U.S. Department of Defense

helicopters, like the AgustaWestland AW139 medium-twin, have full ice protection systems (FIPS), which include ice detectors, an automatic activation system with manual backup, electrical power generators, engine intake protection grids and heated windshield and main and tail rotor blades. However, many older or smaller rotor craft do not have these features, giving the pilots flying them very little options. While recent American theaters have been characterized by heat, not by cold, it may be a good idea to implement these anti-icing features during the current fleet overhaul.

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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Lifecycle management is naturally a difficult and costly process for any platform, but helicopters in particular have a high rate of use. Recent operations have seen a high risk of all moving parts becoming clogged with sand, so regular wear and tear demands more frequent refits. Bullet holes, of course, mean an even longer day at the office. During times of conflict, balancing mission requirements with scheduled maintenance becomes an advanced juggling act, and if mechanical problems occur mid-flight, “safe” landing surfaces may need to be scouted out before engineers go to work inside what is potentially hostile territory. Several members of the maintenance community shared their personal gripes with Defence IQ:

MAINTENANCE CORAL SEA (July 7, 2009) Lance Cpl. Saul Medrano

records the serial numbers on CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter rotor heads in the hangar bay of the

amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Greg

Johnson/Released)

“During combat, [the main problem] would be managing your phase bank time. You have a fixed number of phase teams and an average time to complete the phases, so you can only produce so much bank time. Your commanders will always try to outfly the bank time that is being produced.” “Managing multiple deliverables with limited resources under a time sensitive and cost sensitive manner without compromising dispatch reliability is the toughest challenge .More line maintenance effort equals reduced heavy maintenance effort which increases fleet asset availability .” “Rotational shifts ,AOG solutions ,logistics and planning around dispatch reliability is the most important aspect . Another key factor is to make sure that the aircraft are constantly made available for maintenance to inspect during a flight day so that maintenance planning can be made more effective & efficient .”

The Issue

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MAINTENANCE Facilitating a streamlined approach to the maintenance process is an ability that several international companies are claiming to have a hold on. RUAG Aviation, for example, has over 40 years in the helicopter MRO business and supports the likes of the Swiss Air Force and German Federal Armed Forces, taking up nuts-and-bolts duties on the Super Puma, Bell UH-1D and Cougar. Contractors go to great lengths to ensure that they are running line maintenance in accordance with the customer’s needs, recognising that no military will necessarily have the same method, demands or expectations as another. Constant adaptability is also important. On the front line, one US combat aviation brigade established a forward-thinking scheme to avoid ‘ferry’ service to get parts sent across the battle space six days a week, meaning that the wait for parts has been reduced.

Steve Buchanan, a US Army Helicopter Technical Inspector, writes: “Command emphasis and prioritization are key. The units I have seen with the worst overall aircraft condition had the OR rate as the defining stat. Sounds backwards, but while the aircraft were listed as FMC, a check of how often the aircraft assigned to a mission actually flew the mission told a much different story. If you refuse to order a part AOG because it will lower your OR rate, then you have an aircraft listed as flyable, but in reality it is grounded. The best units had a very balanced set of priorities with the emphasis on ensuring that every time a pilot pulled the trigger, the aircraft completed the mission.” Technological developments are also providing a helping hand. As mentioned, advanced diagnostic monitoring system are emerging, with on-board sensors and signals providing real-time alerts when mechanical units or components may be at risk of failing and constantly keeping tabs on the stability of the main rotor. Early warning of this type can prevent problems from going unchecked and becoming worse over time, as well as preventing full-scale crashes.

What can be done about it?

Spc. Joseph Greemore checks equipment on a CH-47 Chinook helicopter at Entebbe airfield prior to the start of Natural Fire 10.

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All types of structures, from bridges and chimneys to off-shore constructions, ships, and, of course, aerospace vehicles, undergo the effects of fluid-structure interaction. However, because of the stringent requirement of designing light-weight, high-strength aerospace vehicles, aeroelastic effects assume greater significance. The basic ingredients required for any aeroelastic analysis are: • Structural operator • Inertia operator • Aerodynamic operator

The complexity of the problem is dictated by physics, particularly the physics of aerodynamic,

AEROELASTICITY structural aspects. The aeroelastic problems in helicopters can be classified into two categories. • Isolated blade structural dynamic and aeroelastic

behavior • Coupled rotor/fuselage dynamic problems.

These characteristics influence not only a helicopter’s response agility but also its performance, due to rotor/fuselage dynamic coupling. Helicopter rotor blades are subject to moderate deformations in flap (out-of-plane bending), lag (in-plane bending), torsion and axial modes. The most challenging aspect of rotary-wing aeroelasticity is the formulation of aerodynamic loads acting on the blade. The complexities arise due to compressibility in the advancing side, reverse flow and stall in retreating side, radial flow effects, blade-vortex

GULF OF ADEN (June 6, 2011) Civilian helicopter engineer Sam Russell signals a 330J Puma helicopter to land aboard the Military Sealift Command dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Alan Shepard (T-AKE 3) to pick up pallets of supplies during a replenishment at sea. Photo by U.S. Navy – Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Trevor Welsh.

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The Issue (Source)

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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Over the years, researchers have worked to develop structural models for the rotor blade undergoing axial, bending and torsional deformations. Earlier models were restricted to isotropic blades. Today, the structural modeling of rotor blades has reached a high level of maturity. Because of the complexity of the aerodynamic environment, there are still many unresolved issues relating to rotor blade loads and fuselage response. For instance, the existence of several frequencies below the rotor RPM poses a problem, in the vibratory signature of the fuselage as observed in flight test data of several helicopters. A recent attempt has been made (see section source) to understand the possible cause for this observed phenomenon in flight test data. In order to do so;

AEROELASTICITY

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What can be done about it?

interaction and non-uniform time varying inflow through the rotor disc due to unsteady rotor wake.

“Researchers formulated a nonlinear aeroelastic response problem involving dynamic stall effects. As a result, a new modified dynamic stall

model has been proposed and it is shown that this model provides a better correlation with experimental stall data. By studying the response

characteristics of a 2-D airfoil, it is shown that nonlinear dynamic stall in association with aeroelastic couplings above a certain level can lead to a bounded chaotic motion. Currently research activity is in progress on the

development of a comprehensive aeroelastic analysis in this area, and future research such as this will .”

(Source)

U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters carrying Army Gen. Lloyd Austin III, the commander of U.S. Central Command, and his staff prepare to land at Forward Operating Base Gamberi, Laghman province, Afghanistan, Oct. 6, 2013. Photo by SGT Eric Provost

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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BROWNOUT

Degraded Visual Environment (DVE) is cited by some as the biggest ongoing problem operating modern rotary-wing assets – particularly for those in deployment in dry, dusty regions. Reports suggest that it costs US forces $100m a year for Middle East operations, and has been responsible for 3 of every 4 accidents. Hundreds of helicopters have been lost in the past ten years to brownout, along with hundreds more lives. Adding to the difficulty, brownout tends to be caused by a combination of factors, including wind speed and rotor configuration, while most of the aircraft in combat do not have the luxury of preparing or analyzing the landing site. In essence, this isn’t just a case of having a clouded visual field – dust clouds can play optical games on a pilot, skewing his or her sense of motion (i.e. ‘vector illusion’) and of the horizon angle. More odd is the relatively recent discovery of the ‘Kopp-Etchells Effect’ wherein landing in a dust cloud at night has been observed to spark sand on blades, creating a bright halo around the rotor and potentially resulting in disorientation. Worse still is the long-term sand erosion of nickel or tin based rotor blades, driving up maintenance requirements and costs. It’s nature versus machine… and to date, nature is winning.

What can be done about it? There have been recommendations for operational variances that can offset the probability of being caught up in the storm, such as landing at higher speed to stay ahead of recirculating dust, but these are largely reliant on specific surfaces and platform capabilities. Effective and intense training is vital, requiring simulators that can accurately replicate a brownout experience. AgustaWestland has spent time on developing this type of visualization with the British MoD, while other private firms such as Quantum3D, have attempted to tackle this specific issue, as seen here. More recently, machine is

making a comeback, with a range of technologies being touted as potential solutions to the problem. Sierra Nevada’s Helicopter Autonomous Landing System (HALS) uses sensors on a 94 GHz radar, which is barely impacted by dust, sand or smoke. Integrating this with broader 3d mapping and satellite technology, the pilot is provided a detailed color display in the cockpit with which to navigate the descent. US forces have been trialing it in Afghanistan from the beginning of 2013. Meanwhile, BAE Systems unveiled its similar Brownout Landing Aid System Technology (BLAST) back in 2011, based on off-the-shelf technology and apparently ready for full-scale production.

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The Issue

As a Royal Air Force Merlin helicopter comes into land in Helmand Afghanistan, it creates a large dust cloud known to pilots and aircrew as a 'Brownout'. Photo by Sgt Steve Blake RLC/MOD, OGL.

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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BROWNOUT DARPA began to test its own solution program in 2009, termed Multifunction Radio Frequency (MFRF) – formerly “Sandblaster”, exploring millimeter wave (MMW) radar to update a stored terrain database and create a display for the pilot. The program remains in development with plans to see it complete laboratory testing of key subsystem technologies for waveforms and arrays by 2013. BAE also won this development contract earlier in the year. The US Army has also spent resources on the development of the Tactile Situational Awareness System (TSAS) by Chesapeake Technology International, which as the name suggests, is designed with a number of aims including a capacity to help pilots ‘feel’ their flight maneuvers with touch and vibration indicators, removing dependency on pure vision. Other ideas suggest a reconfiguration of the blades to reduce downwash, which may well be considered on future rotary-wing programs.

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There have been recommendations for operational variances that can offset the probability of being caught up in the storm, such as landing at higher speed to stay ahead of recirculating dust, but these are largely reliant on specific surfaces and platform capabilities.

Photo by Jan Brüggemann

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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Quite simply, shielding the aircrew from the hazards of combat and extending the probability of survival in the event of attack or crash is – rightfully so – high on the agenda for investment and innovation. While elements like brownout, pilot error and other incidents may demand sturdy protection for the on-board crew, the immediate need for armor and countermeasures from even small arms fire is essential, given the traditional vulnerability of helicopters to these types of threat, particularly in low-level COIN operations.

What can be done about it? Statistics show that the most areas of the aircraft most vulnerable to projectiles are the sides of the cockpit and cabin, and the tail. Composite armor made from materials such as UHMWPE (Ultra-High Molecular Weight

SURVIVABILITY Polyethylene) is generally geared towards absorption and dispersal of impact. By ‘capturing’ the fragments of a bullet, the likelihood of fragments from ricocheting is greatly decreased. Companies such as Armor Works offer easily refit armor to cover the outer cabin/cockpit and the internal seat arrangement, with scalable solutions depending on requirements for weight and operations. For obvious reasons, super lightweight plating has been turning heads in recent years, with this recorded test being conducted on new solutions, demonstrating LEVEL III NIJ at 3.2 lbs that stops rounds of 5.56x45mm and .308 at 100 feet. As advances go, the current approach is “the lighter, the better.” Stopping the projectiles from even reaching the armor plating is obviously preferred. In this instance, countermeasures based on infrared and laser – gradually replacing the older flare-based approach – are being updated to increase the reaction and likelihood of homing missiles to be

Leaves and twigs are whipped into the air by the rotor wash of UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter as soldiers prepare to hook up an M119A2 105mm howitzer during air assault training at Fort Bragg, N.C., on Feb. 8, 2013. The soldiers are assigned to 3rd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment. Photo by DoD – Sgt. Michael J. MacLeod, U.S. Army.

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The Issue

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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drawn away from the aircraft. In much the same way as armor plating, there is also higher emphasis now on lower-weight, more mobile options. Northrop Grumman, working on a $31.4m US Army contract, is developing the next generation laser-based Common Infrared Countermeasure (CIRCM) Technical Demonstration (TD) program designed primarily to counter MANPADS. Ultimately, with a planned supporting A-kit weight of 35 lbs for smaller military helicopters (Apache, Black Hawk) or 70 lbs for large rotorcraft (Chinook, V-2 Osprey), and 85 lbs for the jamming B-kit with two turrets, the equipment could see integration on helicopters across all services. Earlier still in the threat chain is understanding from where small arms fire is emanating. The Boeing Apache AH-64D, already a primary force to be reckoned with, is looking to be gifted further with the ability to pinpoint hostile fire. The Ground Fire Acquisition System (GFS) aims to shorten the time it takes for the pilot and nearby forces to respond evasively and return fire before the enemy can reload for a second chance. When providing this type of fire from the helicopter itself, it follows that more reliable armament systems are always of interest. In particular, suppressive fire to cover helicopters landing in the midst of battle is vital, and modern minigun variants demand higher accuracy, higher rate of fire and – given the large amount of ammunition needed for mere seconds of use – lighter hardware remains a must. Meanwhile, missile armament calls for better precision-strike and reliable tracking of moving targets. In this endeavor, for example, Lockheed Martin continues to test its direct attack guided rocket (DAGR) system, allowing Hellfire missiles to ‘lock-on-after-launch’ at a long-range 5km flight and able to launch from a 5-degree offset.

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SURVIVABILITY Suppressive fire to cover helicopters landing in the midst of battle is vital, and modern minigun variants demand higher accuracy, higher rate of fire and – given the large amount of ammunition needed for mere seconds of use – lighter hardware remains a must.

5 Major Problems With Combat Helicopters

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MEET THE SPEAKERS

Lieutenant General Jon M. Davis assumed his current position as the Deputy Commandant for Aviation, Headquarters Marine Corps in June 2014.

In May 2015 LtCol Taylor was assigned as CH-53E/MH-53E Integrated Program Team Lead for PMA-261, overseeing all program office activities for 177 Navy and Marine Corps H-53E aircraft in service around the world.

Chris Seymour was named Program Manager for the Bell V-280 Valor Program at Bell Helicopter in November 2013.

Doug Shidler is the Director of Light Tactical Helicopters for Sikorsky Aircraft. He is responsible for development and execution of the S-97TM RaiderTM Program.

Jon Davis Deputy Commandant for Aviation

USMC

LtCol Brian Taylor CH-53E/MH-53E Integrated Program Team Lead

USMC

Christopher Seymour V22 Program Manager

Bell Helicopter

Doug Shidler Director of Light Tactical Helicopter

Sikorsky Aircraft

Explosive Ordnance Disposal 1st Class Christopher Courtney assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit Six (EODMU-6), Det. 16 assist his team members during Special Purpose Insertion Extraction (SPIE) training from an SH-60 Seahawk helicopter. By United States Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Miguel Angel Contreras

Join helicopter pilots from respected industry giants, as well as highly decorated officers from multiple branches of the military, at the Military Helicopters Summit, to discuss the strategies which will inform US armed forces rotary wing strategy for decades to come. Note: Government and military personnel attend for free!

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July 25-27 /// Enterprise, Alabama

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