From 18-28 September, the S-100 completed a total of 9 routine night flights along a 70 km (43 miles) stretch of the Austrian/Slovakian border, a mission normally performed by manned helicopters.  The BM.I was extremely impressed by the S-100s performance. "CAMCOPTER S-100 has been found to be a thoroughly reliable, efficient and tactical tool for police border patrol operations, said Chief Inspector Kurt Brunner, program manager for BM.I. "The development of this UAV over the last years has resulted in a high-tech aircraft that is able to professionally fulfill a wide range of applications, both in the military and police spheres, as well as catastrophe and rescue response."

Flying at night at an altitude of 1,500 ft (450 m), the S-100 regularly detected points of interest at ranges of over 3,000 m (3,300 yards), using the thermal imager on the installed IAI/Tamam POP200 stabilized EO/IR gimbal system. 

The S-100 was controlled by Schiebel operators, flying preprogrammed paths that could be interrupted at any time to survey specific points of interest or known hot spots used by human traffickers.

The payload itself was operated by the same police officers that normally operate similar payloads aboard the BM.Is manned helicopters. The payload operator communicated with both Austrian and Slovakian police and military teams in the field to investigate any suspicious activity detected from the S-100. Video was recorded onboard and at the control station, as well as being forwarded via network to a nearby command post.

The two-week demonstration is the first known integration of a UAV system in live border patrol operations along the European Union (Schengen area) border. The successful tests bode well for future UAV employments along the border, which is set to expand in 2007.

All flights were staged from the top of Braunsberg nearby the town of Hainburg, a 346 meter (1,100 ft) tall mountain overlooking the Danube River and the Slovakian capital of Bratislava. Two standard missions were programmed, one 50 km (31 mi) to the north, along the March River, and one 20 km (12 mi) to the south along the border to the town of Kittsee. The flight paths, programmed under the supervision of AustroControl, the Austrian aviation authority, avoided flight over built-up areas, as well as the nature preserve along the March river.

While the patrols were normally flown at an airspeed between 30 and 50 kts (55 to 93 km/h), they were often interrupted by placing the S-100 in an automatic hover to observe specific areas for longer periods. Flights varied in duration from one to 2.5 hours.

The S-100, which already flies with an experimental registration in Austria, received approval for the flights in civilian airspace by means of an extension to its existing AustroControl-issued Permission to Fly. This extension was dependent upon a configuration and safety audit, which confirmed that the S-100 is being operated and maintained in accordance with manned aircraft standards. 

In order to assure separation from manned aircraft, a NOTAM (notice to airmen) was issued establishing a temporary restricted area below 2,000 ft (610 m) in the border area. In addition, the S-100 was equipped with a Mode-C transponder enabling the air traffic control centres at the nearby Vienna Schwechat and Bratislava International airports to track each flight.

Source: Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI)
Article by AUVSI Staff
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