Wildfire Recon Mission
Your UAS design was approved and manufactured by your company. The city of South Lake Tahoe has requested its first use in a small wildfire that was reported west of the city. You will plan and execute an autonomous mission using your multicopter UAV and the QGroundControl ground control station software. As with other SIMNET activities, you may perform the scenario as often as needed to meet all goals.
Mission Objective
Your goal is to establish a live video feed of the wildfire at the command post to allow the Incident Commander to evaluate and plan to send in ground fire crews.
Details
The fire has been reported near the East Peak Lake on the East Peak mountain.
You must operate under FAR Part 107 rules, using a BVLOS flight waiver to allow for BVLOS operations.
Select UAS Consultant Part 2 to access the SIMNET mission. Detailed instructions, including a map with location details, are included. Load your saved design from Part 1 using the "Aircraft Load" button on the toolbar.
Note: After you load your aircraft, you may receive a message that indicates your vehicle is not configured. You can ignore this.
Mission Planning
For your convenience, this information about QGC for planning and flying your mission is provided here again in case you need it.
Watch the following demonstration videos from YouTube for instructions on planning and flying your mission with QGroundControl linked to SIMNET. Please note that any changes you may need to make to your waypoints after connecting QGC to SIMNET will require you to exit, go back to QGC to make the changes, and reconnect QGC to SIMNET.
SIMNET QGroundControl Tutorial
You may use Google Earth to assist in mapping out your mission if you are not experienced with using aviation mapping sources. Account for the terrain elevation changes when planning your mission.
Regulatory Planning
Consider the following FAR Part 107 limitations in your planning and how they apply in these circumstances. While other parts apply, for this project and time considerations, you are only required to address these:
You can only fly during daylight.
The max altitude is 400 feet.
You will not apply for actual waivers, but you must answer how you would approach these constraints in your mission report, including the BVLOS waiver required for this mission.
Safety & Human Factors Planning
Aside from your pre-flight inspection, make note of anything that comes to mind in this area that you would add to your planning checklist in a real-world operation such as this. It is unnecessary to perform research; the intent is to recall anything you may have learned during this course or from personal experience.
You will submit a report of the mission plan that includes regulatory, safety, and human factors considerations.
Mission Execution
Click on the link below to access the simulated exercise. Once the simulation loads, load your drone design. When you've perfected the flight, download and submit your completion certificate.