Title: Civil Air Patrol
1Civil Air Patrol
United States Air Force Auxiliary
performing Missions for America
Airborne Imagery CAPabilities
1
2About CAP
- CAP is a Congressionally chartered, federally
supported, non-profit corporation that serves as
the official auxiliary of the United States Air
Force. (USAF) -
- Title 10 Asset.
- 63,000 members nationwide.
- Performs 95 of inland Search and Rescue for the
US Air Force. - Homeland Security support for various federal
agencies
3CAP Personnel
- All Volunteer Task Force
- 387 Qualified Aircrews in Florida
- Federally screened for
- Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA),
- Customs and Border Patrol (CBP)
- Many personnel have Department of Defense (DoD)
Secret and Top Secret clearances.
4Florida Operations Tempo
- 2-3 Search and rescue missions per week
- 2 classified Homeland Security mission per week
- 3 fire patrol missions per day
- Nightly coastal patrols
5Nationwide Resources
8,000 Mobile Radios
56,590 Members
550 Aircraft 62 Gliders
34,844 Officers
14,900 Portables
21,746 Cadets
2,100 Fixed Land Radios
6Florida Air Assets
Cruise speed 110-135 kts Range 520-730 NM
Gippsland GA-8 (1)
Cessna 206 (1)
Cessna 182 (7)
Can operate with 2500 runway VHF AM and FM
radio 100 aircraft have satellite phones
Cessna 172 (17)
7Cost-effective Force Multiplier
Notes Chart shows average cost per flying hour
CAP normally receives funding from the requesting
agency
8Imagery Products
9Ad-hoc / Dynamic Tasking
- Fast Response Time
- Airframe in holding pattern
- Airframe tasked Via Radio
- On Site Command and Control Element.
- Images Stamped with Location Data
- EXIF /IPTC
- Near real time delivery via SDIS / WMIRS
10Ad-hoc / Dynamic Tasking
Integrated into Incident Mapper
11Airborne Mapping
- 10 Mega pixel image
- 800 X 800 ground footprint
- Flown at 1200 feet
- Shot at 45 degree angle
- All images EXIF / IPTC Tagged
12ARCHER Concept Capabilities
- What is ARCHER?
- Airborne
- Real-Time
- Cueing
- Hyperspectral
- Enhanced
- Recon
13ARCHER Concept Capabilities
- ARCHER is a custom-designed system of
hyperspectral imaging hardware and software
(HSI). - HSI is a technology that allows a sensor on a
moving platform to detect and/or gather reflected
radiation (light) from man-made or natural
objects on the ground. - Hyperspectral Imaging will support current and
future CAP missions - Search and Rescue (SAR)
- Disaster Relief (DR)
- Homeland Security (HLS)
- Counter Drug (CD)
14ARCHER Concept Capabilities
- ARCHER executes three separate algorithms for
target acquisition and identification - Spectral signature matching detects specific
spectral signatures using matched filters (find
things with known spectral properties) - Requires an exact sample of the color for best
operation - May be obtained via overflight (recommended) or
handheld spectrometer - Varying weather conditions and shadows can impact
spectrometer readings - Potential Missions SAR, DR, HLS
- Anomaly detection detects spectral anomalies
(things that do not belong) - Does not work well in an urban environment
- Potential Missions SAR, CD, HLS, DR
- Change detection detects changes over time in a
pixel-by-pixel comparison - Comparisons of similar time periods and recent
data yields better results - Potential Missions HLS, DR, SAR, CD
15ARCHER Concept Capabilities
- ARCHER is a non-invasive reflective light
technology - Works best on clear days when the sun is high
- Sorties are typically conducted at mid-day to
support this - ARCHER will NOT make detections
- Through solid materials (e.g., roofs, buildings,
walls, floors, etc.) - Underground
- Under snow
- Under water
- Under trees
- At night
- Will not detect small objects (less than 1 meter
square when operating at 2500 ft) such as missing
persons
16HSI Aircraft GA-8 Airvan
ARCHER System Components
17ARCHER System Components
ARCHER Onboard Components
18ARCHER Ground Station(Crew must deploy with
ground station)
ARCHER System Components
19ARCHER System Components
ARCHER Swath
20ARCHER Target Detection Example
36
Mojave, CA Test Anomaly Detection
Ground Truth Image of Target
21ARCHER Target Detection Example
Seymour, IN Test Match Filter Detection
Ground Truth Image of Target
22ARCHER Target Detection Example
Hurricane Katrina Roof Damage
23ARCHER Target Detection Example
Unidentified Aircraft Beside Dirt Runway
24ARCHER Target Detection Example
Missouri F-15 Accident
25Questions?
26For more information contact
- Mission Requests
- Florida Wing Duty Officer
- (888) 359-4727
- Email DutyOfficer_at_flwg.gov
- CAP National Operations Center
- (888) 211-1812
- (334) 953-3922
- DSN 493-9322
- Email opscenter_at_capnhq.gov
27For more information contact
- Administrative Contact
- Nick Simoncini, 1LT, CAP
- (813) 784-0857
- nsimoncini_at_flwg.gov