Out West, Lt. Trevor Clark, aids to navigation (ATON) program manager/design engineer for Civil Engineering Unit Oakland, is in charge of aids to navigation along the entire West Coast. His unit received its SR-UAS in early August and within 60 days had used it for shore-launched inspections of fixed aids to navigation from California to Washington; for a post-Hurricane Lane damage survey of Hilo Harbor on the big island of Hawaii; for taking video of at-sea gunnery exercises for the crew of the CGC Terrapin; for ATON inspections launched from small boats; and for inspecting the structure of one of the outbuildings adjacent to the Point Bonita Lighthouse, near the Golden Gate Bridge.
Clark’s team has also used it for close inspection of the 112-year-old Mile Rocks Lighthouse, about a mile southwest of the Golden Gate Bridge. Though its light tower was removed more than 50 years ago, the lighthouse’s first story remains an important aid to navigation. Set amid heavy currents, rough surf, and a cluster of other rocks, it’s virtually inaccessible by boat, so a helicopter landing pad was placed atop the base to allow access for inspection and maintenance crews. With the SR-UAS, Clark’s team is no longer dependent on putting a helicopter and aircrew in the sky just to have a look. “With the UAS,” he said, “we can get close enough to monitor Mile Rocks’ condition, and better plan for repair work.”
“Eventually we’re going to have a list of authorized systems,” Lampe said, “because there is no one-size-fits-all piece of equipment. Some units will have one system, and another unit will want a different one, and a third unit may need both. We’d like for them to be able to pick and choose, to use what works best for them.”
On a couple of occasions, Clark’s SR-UAS has proved not only faster and cheaper than the traditional Coast Guard solution for a certain application; in the rough surf of the Pacific, particularly in the Northwest, it’s also a tool that can reduce risks for both boat and aviation crews. In Grays Harbor, Washington, Clark’s team confronted rough seas when it came time to inspect a pair of old range towers, about a half-mile from the harbor, that were slated for demolition. A few dozen cormorants had taken up residence and built nests in the towers, and Clark and his team, in order to get the appropriate demolition permit, needed to see if there were any hatchlings, nestlings, or juveniles among the birds. “I didn’t really recognize the danger of sending a boat out there until I went out there myself in that small ATON work boat,” Clark said. Within five minutes of his arrival, the surf had intensified from about a foot or two to 2- to 6-foot swells, and he promptly turned back for the harbor. Once on shore, he sent out the UAS to take pictures and video and document the colony’s status.
The GUPPI program is the Coast Guard’s first step toward what is likely to be the widespread adoption of short-range UAS technology throughout the service. “There isn’t a single rate or a single mission in the Coast Guard,” said Lampe, “that couldn’t use this for something. There aren’t that many things that happen in the Coast Guard that have the potential to affect the entire Coast Guard, and this is one of [those] things. Short-range UAS is going to make life significantly better for the far-flung, forgotten dark corners of our organization.”
An additional advantage of using off-the-shelf, commercially available systems, Lampe said, is that they can be easily replaced: Despite the versatility of the system used by the Coast Guard, short-range UAS is a new technology, and like all new technologies, its current generation will probably be obsolescent in about 18 months. If the service’s first experience with short-range UAS is any indication, there will be a lot more systems in service by then, and over time Lampe expects to see a diversification of the SR-UAS fleet. “Eventually we’re going to have a list of authorized systems,” Lampe said, “because there is no one-size-fits-all piece of equipment. Some units will have one system, and another unit will want a different one, and a third unit may need both. We’d like for them to be able to pick and choose, to use what works best for them.”
The Coast Guard’s adoption of short-range UAS is happening fast – and after a few months of using his drone in Duluth, Lenz expects the pace to accelerate as other units catch on. “If I can do this, anyone can,” he said. “Five years from now, these things are going to be at every Coast Guard unit.”