UAV Training Manual 1.

1
A Guide to Training and Use of UAVs to Mitigate Human-Elephant Conflicts
January 2016
Created by RESOLVE and the Mara Elephant Project

Note to user: This guide is part of an HEC Toolkit to aid in the use and operation of
UAVs (aka drones) to safely move elephants out of crops

For the purposes of the below lesson plans the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle that we
will be discussing will be flown by the pilot not more than 1,000 meters from the
UAV and in line of sight (having a visual of the UAV while piloting) as much as
possible. The UAVs have First Person Vision (FPV) capabilities. It is more difficult to
fly in FPV mode. Each trainer will work individually with a student pilot until they
have learned all the below maneuvers. The trainers will demonstrate each
maneuver slowly and clearly and then allow a student to attempt the same. As
competency increases the teams will move into real missions and use the UAVs to
add to the ability of existing ranger rapid response teams. Each UAV pilot will need a
co-pilot ranger. The co-pilot does not need flight training but they do need a detailed
briefing especially if they will be a light operator at night. After each mission make
sure to properly store footage and fill out provided datasheets.

Introduction:

All student pilots will be introduced to the flight controls of the UAV and the
operator’s manual produced by the manufacturer. The manual will introduce detail
on flight control import for the UAV, safety parameters, understanding light signals
and maintenance. Student pilots will receive a UAV manual for their specific
machine.

All student pilots will review the flight controls. At the end of the flight manual
review all students will be required to answer questions about the flight controls,
components and light signals.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER IS FLIGHT HAZARDS! IF YOU

ARE IN DOUBT THAT YOU WILL ENDANGER YOURSELF OR ANY PERSONS OR
ANIMALS AROUND YOU DO NOT FLY.

CIVILAIN OR MILITARY AIR TRAFFIC: Do not fly if you know there is air traffic
in the area. All flights to respond to Human Elephant Conflict are low level and
should be out of civilian air traffic patterns. If the UAV pilot SEES OR HEARS an
Aircraft LAND IMMEDIATELY. See supplement on page 8 to avoid this hazard.
BIRD STRIKES: Do not fly into areas with heavy bird concentrations. Vultures
circling or nesting sites. If a bird of prey starts to attack the UAV then LAND
IMMEDIATELY.

DANGEROUS AREAS: Power lines, buildings, crowds of people, fires, heavy

rain, and very dark nights. Fly with great caution.

Basic Flight Maneuvers: 1 to 6. All manipulations of the controls should be

smooth and steady. No abrupt movements are ever required. Feathering of the
controls refers to a gentle movement and then release of the control. The UAV
will fly at 60Kilometers per hour so full forward, sideward or rearward flight
should only be used to get into position when on a real mission.

Power Management: Time each flight with a stopwatch time on the camera. If
using the camera make sure you start recording just before you power up the
UAV.

Use of Checklists: Always use the provided Checklist before each flight.

1. Pre flight checks: Inspect the rotors for damage or looseness, inspect the
airframe for cracks, looseness of components and rigidity. Switch on UAV and
remote control listen for the correct light signals and wait for GPS lock. Run
motors in idle and listen for any abnormal sounds from motors.

2. Powering up and hovering: Power up the UAV as the instruction manual

directs. Choose a flat area with no ground obstacles and loose particles,
which could jam the motors. Increase the throttle until the UAV is hovering at
3 feet Above Ground Level. Release the controls and allow the inboard GPS to
maintain a position.

3. Climbing clear of obstacles: Manipulate the throttle control to climb to an

altitude where forward flight is possible clear of obstacles.

4. Forward, backward, and banking flight: Demonstrate the different control

inputs to get the desired flight maneuver.

After each maneuver bring the ship back to the starting position and attempt the
next maneuver.

If the UAV is out of control release the flight controls immediately and allow the ship
to hover in place. Once you have established the heading of the ship attempt to
retrieve.

NOTE: when the UAV is flying directly away or toward the controller it will appear
not to move.
TO KNOW IF THE UAV IS FLYING AWAY OR TOWARD YOU THERE ARE TWO
METHODS:
1) Bank the UAV to the left: if the UAV goes left it is flying away: if the UAV goes
right it is flying toward you.
2) Establish visual of the bottom and rear lights in relation to the pilot. If the red
light is in front of the green light it is coming toward you. If the red light is
behind the green light it is flying away from you. Have a secondary spotter with
binoculars to help keep track of the UAV.

5. Yaw: The heading direction of the UAV is controlled by YAW. This is the
lateral control. Feather the direction control of the UAV until it is heading
back toward the pilot. Fly back toward the landing site using the forward
and bank controls. The Yaw control can be used instead of the bank control
for beginner pilots. Draw a box traffic pattern in the sky and fly over the box
using the forward flight control and the Yaw control.

6. Landing: Position the UAV over the desired landing site and feather down
the throttle control until the UAV is 3 inches above ground level. Cut the
power and let the UAV settle. Note: the UAV will slightly rock with a straight
down approach this is because it is flying down though its own rotor vortices.

7. Combination Controls: These control inputs demand more concentration

and focus from the pilot. The controls can be combined to get a number of
desired flight maneuvers.

Forward climb out: after bringing UAV into a hover continue to climb while
flying forward. The pilot should reach his intended altitude without delay
and continue with his/her mission as soon as possible after take-off.

Landing: 40feet from the ground start an even approach to the landing spot
by flying forward and feathering down throttle at the same time. This
approach will help to save battery time. When you have reached your landing
spot cut the power and allow UAV to settle. Many of the deployments will
include having the co-pilot catch the UAV. The pilot should let him know
when it is safe to catch UAV and as soon as the co-pilot has a firm grip on
UAV cut the power.

When a Pilot has demonstrated competency of the above they are ready to move
onto move advanced maneuvers and missions.

1. Quick Stop: During forward flight move the control from forward to
rearward flight until the UAV has come to a complete stop. This maneuver
 will allow the pilot to approach the desired point fast and stop there. It will
be useful during real missions when coming up to elephants fast and low.

2. Low-level flight in confined areas: Have a clear mental picture of where

you want to fly before getting behind the controls. Make steady and accurate
turns while flying an irregular coarse. Try to incorporate several quick stocks
and combination controls.

3. Flying low between obstacles: Have a clear mental picture of what your
flight path will look like and try to stick to it. When in doubt climb out to
avoid obstacles. Elephants are usually in areas where there are a number of
obstacles, usually trees that need to be flown over or around. The pilot needs
to decide whether he is going to trade the effect of flying low to push the
elephant or higher keeping the UAV safely out of the trees.

4. Following a moving target: This mission will combine a number of

maneuvers. Get a volunteer to assume the behavior of an elephant. With the
instruction to move then the drone is 10feet away from them. Gently push
the person (elephant) in the desired direction by slowly approaching from
behind the direction you want to move them and keep on them. Try to
incorporate the

5. Vehicle Deployments: It is important to safely be able to deploy from a

vehicle, as this will be your deployment platform for most of your missions.
Remove the UAV from its carry case, Use checklist, ask assistant to hold the
UAV at arms length and not to let go until he feels it is weightless in his hand.
The pilot should be standing in the back of a pickup and his assistant needs
to hold on to him. The driver should follow the instructions from the pilot
and the pilot should use directions in relation to the front of the car: “10
o’clock from the front of the car”. The drivers briefing should be to keep up
with the elephants you are chasing.

6. Ground Deployments: In some cases vehicles will not be able to follow the
elephants either because the ground is too rough, to thick, or through crops.
In this scenario the rangers need to have a clear deployment plan, patrol
formation and have clear actions on elephant contact. The pilot and assistant
should always stay next to the IC and not advance in front of his teammates.
The brief will be to follow the elephants as they move. If the pilot needs to fly
with using FPV his situational awareness is greatly diminished and his
assistant needs to guide him by holding onto his shirt or backpack straps.
This should be only time the assistant uses is firearm sling…

7. Using FPV to Pilot: First Person View is a very handy way of controlling the
UAV. This pilot mode is much more difficult than line of site piloting. The
tunnel vision provided by the FPV only allows the pilot to see which direction
the UAV is heading. At low-level flight obstacles behind or to the side will not
 be seen. Slow down flight operations and do clearing turns when in doubt.
If you become disorientated climb out and try to get a visual.

8. Chili Drop (optional and advised only when approved and necessary):
Depending on the aggressiveness of the elephants and their habituation to
drones (not yet studied) it will be necessary to deploy chili powder above the
elephants.

Chili Bag Release: This method results in constant release while flying.
When the pilot is ready to increase release rate he/she rocks the UAV by
using the lateral stick in quick abrupt movements. Mix chili powder with
more coarse mix before mission. Make sure the bags you use are sealed and
stored and ready to attach well before a deployment call. The chili drop can
be increased by rocking the UAV manipulating the BANK control quickly.
Make sure you are right above the elephants when dropping and in favorable
wind conditions.

Long ling release: This method of release entails using a line attached to the
UAV. The deployment of the chili powder using the long line is designed so
that when in slow flight, take off, or during landing very little powder is
released. Powder increases release rate as lateral speed build and spins the
deployment envelope. The envelope is designed so that it spins with the
increase in speed in any direction the UAV flies.

9. Night operation: UAV operations are possible during the night using several
techniques and depending on the equipment being used there are limitations
and advantages of different equipment.

Without lights: This method will limit operations to a well moonlit night and
clear visual of the elephants.

Ground based lighting system: Should be used with a FPV capable UAV.
This system of lighting is only helpful when the ground light can illuminate
the elephants from where the pilot is located. The light operator should
follow the movement of the UAV in slow and steady movements. The UAV
will be using the light to guide its operations though FPV. This will further
increase the tunnel vision though the monitor so slow down maneuvers. If
disorientated use monitor to locate source of light and then pilot will know
that the UAV is facing home.

In Testing:

UAV based lighting system: Used with FPV or line of sight piloting. The
specific UAV’s we are deploying will have a maximum beam length of 50 feet.
This means that the pilot will not see anything further than 50 feet away.
Approach the elephants clear of obstacles and then decent slowly to the
 elephant herd. Once you have the elephants in sight start to move them
slowly sideways while keeping the beam on them at all times.

Ground based thermal system: Line of sight operations: Use your thermal
monocular to locate elephants and set up for operation. Attach signal flare to
skid of UAV and make sure you can see UAV in thermal monocular. Guide
UAV to elephants. Use one eye in the monocular and the other eye to view
UAV.

UAV based FPV thermal: This method allows the pilot to fly an FPV mission-
using thermal in pitch-black conditions. FPV goggles are not advisable in this
scenario since the pilot will not have a visual reference until he gets to a heat
signature. Use an FPV monitor when close to the elephants to complete the
mission.

Deployment in the field:

Only when a student pilot has shown proficiency and has passed all checks for the
above maneuvers he can start to use the UAV in real life operations. The student’s
instructor must sign off on all maneuvers that the student has competed.

For the first 5 missions the instructor should accompany and assist the student.

There are large risks associated with moving elephants and they need to be
calculated before flying each mission and the decision to use the UAV needs to be
carefully thought out before the flight.

The pilot needs to have a mental picture of what his flight will entail. The planning
stage needs to include:

The desired direction the team wants to move the elephants in: To choose this the
pilot and team will use common sense. In general terms the elephants should be
moved away from a farm and back into a conservation area or area where they are
not at risk of being attacked by the community. This should be done in a calm and
persistent manner to get the elephants moving but not running. The route should
also be chosen to minimize crop trampling if possible.

Make sure that the path of the elephants does not pass settlements or community
members.

Make sure that the team is not in the path of the elephants and can move if are in
danger of being charged.

Make sure that fences are down and if electrified are switched off.
Maneuvers for moving elephants

If possible always try to move elephants away from the team and not toward the
team. The reasons for this are: That the team poses a threatening obstacle for the
elephants, which could result in the elephants turning back into the farm or
settlement. Situational awareness is much better when moving the elephants away
from you as you follow behind.

Method for Herding: Approach elephants at a low level and stop UAV 20 feet away
from them. As they start moving away apply lateral controls to steadily span the
herd length. Usually after the first contact the herd will bunch up and then it is
important to keep pushing them in the desired direction by keeping at least 30 feet
behind them allowing you to flank incase of a direction change.

Equip UAV with chili powder but do not deploy unless elephants stop or turn
around. Deploy chili powder close to elephants either using quick stop and/or
lateral rocking. Make sure to always do this in the same direction that you are trying
to push the elephants in, even if wind conditions are not favorable.

When elephants are on a steady move in the desired direction the team needs to
keep up with them and the UAV. Keep at least 300 meters from the UAV if possible
and flying with FPV. If operation is motorbike based be cautions to have an escape
route at all times incase of a charge.

If the herd breaks apart or stragglers fall behind climb to 200 ft. get behind the
straggler or splinter group and return them to the main group.

If there are babies or young elephants do not equip with chili powder and remain 50
feet away from herd at all times.

Actions on: Charging elephants

Sometimes pilots get a false sense of security when operating a UAV. Remember that
there is nothing to stop an elephant from turning around and charging the pilot and
team.

If an elephant charges and the UAV is now behind him/her climb clear of obstacles
and fly full speed home. Once the UAV is again between you and the elephant lower
UAV to 8 feet above ground level.

If charge continues fall back to cover and if in vehicle hold your ground.
If charge continues and becomes a threat to persons, vehicles etc. Fall back and if
necessary release warning shot.

Action on: Community excitement

Often community members bunch to see the drone and get involved in the action of
chasing elephants. Community members should be asked to clear the area before
flying the drone or be well behind the team. Do not attempt to fly if community is
scattered in front of the elephants. This could result in a fatal trampling.

To quell community and normalize UAV usage it maybe useful to have a

demonstration with them. They will then have experience with seeing a UAV and
may not get overly excited the next time.

Actions on: Rain

It is not advisable to fly in heavy rain for several reasons. Damage may occur to the
motors, reduced FPV sight and line of sight. In an emergency tape-up the cooling
ducts on the motors before fight in rain.

Supplements

Note 1: To avoid civilian air traffic it is advisable to take a ground to air radio with
you at all times when operating a UAV. Listen for traffic on the correct frequency
during operations.

Note 2: The use of UAV’s to respond to HEC should always be an asset to the current
team on the ground. At no point should the team switch priorities to accommodate
the UAV. This includes crashes into trees or other obstacles which wastes time and
could be dangerous. Pilots should practice the above maneuvers to avoid this.

Note 3: Flight time is limited to approximately 15 minutes per battery. Flight time is
largely dependent on the weight of a given payload. The heaver the aircraft the
shorter the flight time will be. Try not to waste time taking off, landing, flying very
slowly, or continuous corrections or abrupt inputs on the controls.

Note 4: Maintenance and care:

After every flight turn the UAV upside down and blow air into the cooling ducts on
the motors while spinning them with your finger. By during this dust and dirt will
free itself.

Inspect rotors and fuselage for damage especially if you had a crash. Manipulate
bent blades with your fingers and match track line with fuselage. Change badly
damaged blades. Blade condition greatly affects flight time.
Make sure to charge batteries at the right voltage and make sure that they are not
exposed to excessive heat. Do not charge bulging batteries. Dispose of batteries in
the appropriate manner. Wipe UAV down with a damp cloth and store in carry case.