Pilot and crew aids for the H-60 helicopter

The Naval Postgraduate School is cooperating with personnel at the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) in the development of application software for an intelligent kneeboard system to provide multiple pilot and crew aids for the H-60 series of helicopters. NAWCAD personnel have already deployed a first generation kneeboard system that provides a moving map function. This system is completely self-contained. A second-generation system has recently been developed that is integrated into the H-60 avionics system via the MIL-STD-1553 bus. The newer system will provide the opportunity to add many new features to aid the pilot and crew of the helicopter. Some of the features being investigated include ground proximity warning system (GPWS) based on a 3D terrain database, traffic alert and collision avoidance systems (TCAS), and electronic information display, i.e., checklists, approach plates and other general aviation information. This paper focuses on work at the Naval Postgraduate School to develop a software program to detect the presence of vortex-ring state (VRS), an aerodynamic phenomenon associated with helicopters