Aircrew safety award of distinction - Monthly and Quarterly Award Winners - crew of UAV ensured safe return of troubled aircraft

Combat Edge, March, 2003

On Dec. 9, 2002, the crew of an RQ-1 B Predator UAV, departed for a 17-hour combat mission over Afghanistan in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. Twelve hours into the mission, the pilot noticed a substantial decrease in oil quantity during a routine system check. The UAV was more than 200 miles, nearly 2 1/2 hours of flight time, from the home airfield.

The pilot coordinated with AWACS to terminate the mission. Maintenance personnel advised the crew they could expect 20 minutes of usable flight time after the oil was completely depleted. The crew developed a course of action that addressed an engine-out landing and a possible forced landing. The sensor operator used the UAV's infrared camera to locate two potential landing sites. One hour away from the home air base, the engine's oil system was finally depleted. The crew determined they could increase the engine life beyond the 20 minutes estimated by tech order data by minimizing throttle commands to the engine, thus stopping any engine RPM changes. The UAV's engine finally failed after flying an additional hour beyond the point of zero oil pressure. The crew accomplished the applicable tech order BOLDFACE procedure and established aircraft parameters for a flameout or "dead stick" landing when the aircraft was in a position 40 miles north of the home airfield. All non-essential systems were shut down, leaving them only the landing gear, nose camera, and flight control systems. The crew was concerned with the available battery life and the very real possibility that the aircraft would run out of backup power before reaching the airfield, then stall and fall uncontrollably to the ground. The pilot flew a flawless flameout pattern and landed the aircraft on the centerline of the runway. The aircraft lost all electrical power just after the aircraft came to a complete stop. An additional one minute delay in the descent and landing would have caused a loss of the $3.5 million aircraft.