[Scan-DC] King George's new public safety drone must contend with Navy base's restrictions

[Kenneth Fowler]

   - By CATHY DYSON THE FREE LANCE–STAR
   - 19 hrs ago
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As King George County joins agencies using drones to put eyes in the sky, it will contend with an issue particular to its geography: restricted air space around the Navy base in Dahlgren.

Last week, officials with the Sheriff’s Office and the King George Department of Fire, Rescue and Emergency Service requested $25,000 for an unmanned aerial system, or UAS, that could be used to search for a missing person or to point out the path of a brush fire.

The two agencies would share the small, unmanned aircraft and seek permission from the Federal Aviation Administration to fly at night.

But before the county invested in the commercial equipment, Supervisor Ruby Brabo wanted them to be aware of issues around Naval Support Facility Dahlgren. She described a recent incident, when her daughter brought a new $1,600 drone to Brabo’s property, which abuts Pumpkin Neck. That’s near the base’s Potomac River Test Range and Explosive Experimental Area.

The drone was on private property when all of a sudden, it went “ploop, dropped to the ground, and it was fried,” Brabo said.

She assumed it was because of the pulse generated by the Navy’s electromagnetic railgun. The weapon is an advanced cannon that uses magnetic fields, generated by electricity, to accelerate a metal conductor between two rails that then launch a projectile. The system eliminates the need for high explosives, making ships safer and allowing for more rounds in the ship’s magazine, according to the Navy.

Brabo, who serves with several groups that foster relationships between communities and military bases, has seen drones fall out of the sky three times at Colonial Beach in addition to what happened in her yard.

“Honestly I think everyone assumes it has something to do with the electromagnetic testing,” she told The Free Lance–Star.

Not necessarily so, said Jeron Hayes, public affairs officer with Naval Support Activity South Potomac.

The majority of drones use GPS to fly, and more UAS manufacturers have programmed the units to keep them from entering restricted air spaces. It’s called geofencing.

Hayes said there’s restricted air space around the Pumpkin Neck property where Brabo lives as well as on the base’s main side, where there’s a runway. The FAA mandates a five-mile radius around airfields.

King George has asked other localities to bring their drone and operator into the county for missions. The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office, Fredericksburg Police Department and Virginia State Police already use the equipment to assist in crash investigations or security plans for big events, such as the recent Marine Corps Historic Half marathon.

The Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office got a grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in March to get two drones, which they are sharing with fire and rescue officials in Caroline, Louisa and Orange counties.

In January, a drone from the Stafford Sheriff’s Office was used to locate a 9-year-old who’d gotten lost in the Pumpkin Neck area of King George.

When the Stafford drone hit the same airspace as the equipment flown by Brabo’s daughter, it didn’t plop to the ground, said King George Sheriff Steve Dempsey. Instead, it sensed it had hit a barrier and backed up, which confirms the type of programming Hayes described.

Supervisor Jeff Bueche wondered if the county could continue to ask neighboring localities to send a drone-operator team to King George during emergencies.
“Demand has grown, and they’re getting harder to come by,” Dempsey said, noting one might not be available when the county needs it.
County Administrator Neiman Young has talked with Dempsey and Fire Chief David Moody about both agencies being equipped for whatever happens within county borders. The fire and rescue service was criticized in years past for not having the manpower to answer its own calls.

“We gotta be self-sustaining,” Young said. “We can’t keep relying on mutual aid.”

Bueche suggested waiting for more information, particularly as Fire Battalion Chief Steve Lynd planned to speak with Dahlgren officials after the county approved the drone. Lynd and Hayes stressed the groups have a good working relationship.

But because of the summer slowdown, the Board of Supervisors won’t meet again until Aug. 7. Supervisor John Jenkins Jr., a U.S. Capitol Hill policeman, said he’d rather get the drone on the force as quickly as possible, and fellow board members agreed.

Two members of the Sheriff’s Office and four emergency responders will be trained as operators. Lynd already has his FAA certification and said it will take about 45 days to get the drone and team of operators in place.

The commercial drone has thermal imaging, which allows rescuers to search at night for children or elderly people who may have wandered off, Lynd said.

“They have shown their effectiveness in these kinds of searches,” he added.

He said there are about 1,000 public safety agencies in the United States that use drones of all sizes.

Kenneth Fowler 
KD4IIW