SandBlaster

The Global War on Terror (GWOT) is requiring the US military to conduct very extensive helicopter air assault operations in arid regions of southwest Asia. Prevailing dusty surface conditions there create blinding dust clouds during helicopter take-off and landing. These “brownout” clouds destroy the pilot’s situational awareness during critical phases of flight, and have caused a large number of fatal crashes during GWOT combat operations. The SandBlaster program is aimed at exploring and developing technology to fix the brownout problem. During the initial phase of Sandblaster, extensive tests were conducted at the Yuma Proving Ground dust range, using a wide variety of US military helicopters. These flights thoroughly characterized the associated brownout clouds generated in near-ground helicopter flight operations. Cloud geometries, airborne dust densities and particle size content were measured. These measured properties were then used to precisely emulate cloud characteristics in laboratory tests of “see through” sensor performance. Sandblaster Phase 1 produced important new understanding of the see-through capabilities of LADAR, infrared and millimeter wave sensors in these challenging dust cloud conditions. In subsequent phases, DARPA intends to develop and demonstrate the full range of system technology, including sensors, displays and controls, which are needed to safely land in brownout conditions. Particular emphasis is being placed on rapid development, and affordability, so that Sandblaster upgrade solutions can be quickly and affordably deployed on the US military helicopter fleets, and mitigate the current safety-of-flight problem presented by brownout.