‘‘In the complex acquisition environment in which we operate, cooperative agreements such as the one we have with Australia strengthen the program. It’s a collaboration that benefits us all,” said Capt. Bob Dishman, program manager for NAVAIR’s Persistent Maritime Unmanned Aircraft Systems (PMUAS).

Cooperative agreements are a means of technology investment for countries which have similar military requirements and a reasonably robust defense technology base, and with which the U.S. has solid political and economic ties. It’s a synergistic arrangement that allows the foreign country and the U.S. to collaborate on research, development or acquisition projects and programs. Such is the case for Australian involvement in the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) at Pax River. Cooperative agreements differ from the Navy’s Foreign Military Sales program which allows eligible foreign governments to purchase defense materiel and services, including equipment, training, technical data and engineering services.

BAMS UAS is envisioned to be a network of high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles, linked to bases around the world, providing nonstop intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) with multiple sensors to provide each of the five numbered fleet commanders with a system to support continuous operations within a mission radius of 2,000 nautical miles. There’s a possibility of a sixth orbit, pending a decision by the Australian government for its continued participation in the program.

Under its Project Air 7000 program, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) plans to acquire high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft and upgrade or replace manned aircraft, primarily AP-3C Orion aircraft, to perform ISR tasks over maritime and land environments. The Australian Department of Defense is interested in the BAMS UAS for several primary uses.

‘‘Certainly the BAMS UAS will be used for war fighting, but it is being evaluated as a means of homeland security needs for coastline protection against such activities as drug trafficking, human smuggling and illegal fishing,” according to Brett Haywood, one of three Australian Cooperative Program Personnel (CPP) located with the PMUAS program office.

‘‘A second-tier capability requirement in Australia is for ISR of remote airfields in northern Australia, in part to monitor for drug trafficking. Unmanned aircraft can take on these mundane missions, but with the added bonus of persistence,” he said.

In addition to Haywood, who heads the Australian Defense Science and Technology Organization’s (DSTO) Radar Modeling and Analysis Group, the CPP team includes Trent O’Connor, software engineer, and Flight Lt. Clint Hallam, aeronautical engineer.

Haywood’s education and experience in imaging radar has been key in the BAMS UAS pre-system development and demonstration process for technical analysis of baseline radar system requirements, as well as unique requirements specified by the Australian government.

‘‘Much of my review work was in the area of performance modeling.” Haywood said. ‘‘I’ve also contributed to the BAMS UAS team by supporting the work of Airspace Integration and collaborating on a simulated imagery study that could be used for training operators at ground stations.”

O’Connor, a senior engineer for DSTO’s Airborne Mission Systems, has been integral to the BAMS software team. Hallam of the RAAF is the logistics representative on a multi-discipline team conducting pre-site surveys to determine main operating bases for the BAMS UAS.

‘‘These individuals, each with a unique set of skills and sought-after knowledge and experience, have contributed significantly to several BAMS-related studies that address radar capabilities, modeling and simulation, sense and avoid, human factors and tri-band satellite communication,” said Dishman. ‘‘The program has benefited significantly from their technical evaluations and ancillary involvement in virtually every aspect of the BAMS UAS pre-SDD tasks. Ultimately, their individual and combined contributions benefit the Fleet.”

Once the Defense Acquisition Board gives the BAMS UAS program the go-ahead to proceed with SDD, and a prime contractor is selected, negotiations between the United States and Australia will continue to finalize RAAF involvement in the SDD phase.

(This article was submitted by NAVAIR public affairs.)