Instruction manual

142
distance and altitude, you will have to move further south and may have to increase your
altitude.
You may also use this opportunity to describe some of the video you will be shooting
later, such as access and egress roads or flooded areas downstream of a dam or levee. It
can also be helpful to point out major landmarks that can help ground teams as they arrive on
the scene, and the condition of the roads leading to the target area.
You may describe the overall scene as follows: “We are looking northwards at the fire
from about one mile distance, flying at 4400 feet mean sea level or approximately 1000 feet
above ground level” (note that it is important to include both MSL and AGL heights so that
annalists can relate details of the video to whichever charts or maps they need to use). “The
fire area appears to be approximately five miles by three miles. The western edge of the fire
appears to be approximately ten statue miles from the town of Pampa. The smoke is drifting
in a northwesterly direction. We’ll now move in for a closer look.”
As you begin to circle the fire, staying approximately one mile from the edge of the fire,
your commentary may go like the following: “We are flying northward at 90 miles per hour
and 1000 feet above ground level. Looking eastward, you can see a radio tower just inside
the southwestern edge of the fire area. The smoke is obscuring the northwestern part of the
fire area. You can see what appears to be a single home in the center of the fire area,
engulfed in flames. I am now zooming in to focus on the house. I don’t see any vehicles or
persons on the ground in the vicinity of the house.”
Your narrative continues as you circle the fire. Besides reporting what you see, report
any changes in altitude or wind direction.
These are just examples; you should be thoroughly briefed before you leave, and
knowing what is important to report will help you ask questions during the briefing.
12.3.2 Crew Commentary
Using the circling or 4-Square imaging pattern as an example, the Mission Pilot will set
up the aircraft with the AP looking one nm to the North. Once the pilot has the aircraft
stabilized and wings level she will announce “Aircraft ready.” Once the AP acquires the
target and is ready to shoot, he will announce “Video on.” At this time all non-essential
intercom talk ceases so as not to interfere with the AP’s commentary.
The AP should say “Video off” once he has acquired the video he needs for the overview
pass. Once the Mission Pilot enters the close-in circle or 4-Square pattern, the AP
announces “Video on” and begins the video and audio commentary. This process is
repeated until the video is complete.
NOTE: If communications with ATC are necessary during the video run, the Mission Pilot
may isolate herself from the intercom by using the audio panel. However, flying the entire
video run in this fashion will interfere with the coordination needed between the pilot and AP.
Safety considerations are foremost, but the pilot should try to stay on the intercom with the
AP whenever possible. If you are in busy airspace (e.g., Class B) where there is constant
chatter on the ATC frequency, the pilot may turn down the aircraft radio so the chatter will be
heard as “background” to the AP’s commentary; again, safety is foremost and it may become
necessary to isolate the AP and use hand signals to coordinate with the AP.
12.4 Determine Success or Failure
The AP usually knows whether she got all the required photos, and the third crewmember
can back her up by checking the Photo Log. However, you must check and make sure
because you don’t want to fly all the way back to mission base and then discover that you
missed a shot, or that your photos weren’t framed properly.