UAS Maintenance: A Critical Component in Maintaining Airworthiness

Over the last several decades, the notion of traditional aircraft design has significantly changed. While there are many modern aircraft that resemble earlier models, their components, systems, and overall architecture have evolved, including the introduction of small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS). Despite the growing consumer attraction to own and operate these aircraft, the subsequent impact on safety is an area of intense concern. The requirement of an established maintenance program for manned aircraft is rooted in ensuring that all aircraft are deemed safe for flight. Preventive maintenance schedules are based on component reliability data, which minimizes unnecessary maintenance while preventing maintenance-related aircraft accidents. This same requirement has not been extended to small unmanned aircraft systems. Current regulations and requirements for sUAS maintenance refer only to maintaining airworthiness, with no specific scheduled or unscheduled maintenance practices required. As the demand for small unmanned aircraft systems continues to grow, the safety threat will rise. The requirement of formal maintenance practices, which are based on component reliability data, would fulfill this need. To further explore the possibility of an established maintenance program for sUAS operators, this paper reviews current maintenance requirements and proposes new accident data collection measures which contribute to the creation of a scheduled maintenance program. A formal certification process which follows a modified MSG-3 process is also proposed

UAS Maintenance: A Critical Component in Maintaining Airworthiness

Over the last several decades, the notion of traditional aircraft design has significantly changed. While there are many modern aircraft that resemble earlier models, their components, systems, and overall architecture have evolved, including the introduction of small unmanned aircraft systems. Despite the growing consumer attraction to own and operate these aircraft, the subsequent impact on safety is an area of intense concern. The requirement of an established maintenance program for manned aircraft is rooted in ensuring that all aircraft are deemed safe for flight. Preventive maintenance schedules are based on component reliability data, which minimizes unnecessary maintenance while preventing maintenance-related aircraft accidents. This same requirement has not been extended to small unmanned aircraft systems. Current regulations and requirements for sUAS maintenance refer only to maintaining airworthiness, with no specific scheduled or unscheduled maintenance practices required. As the demand for small unmanned aircraft systems continues to grow, the safety threat will rise. The requirement of formal maintenance practices, which are based on component reliability data, would fulfill this need. To further explore the possibility of an established maintenance program for sUAS operators, this paper reviewed current maintenance requirements and proposes new accident data collection measures which contribute to the creation of a scheduled maintenance program. A formal certification process which follows a modified MSG-3 process is also proposed

Evaluating Small UAS Near Midair Collision Risk Using AeroScope and ADS-B

As small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) continue to proliferate in the National Airspace System (NAS), near midair collisions are becoming more common. In late 2017, the National Transportation Safety Board released a report detailing the first confirmed midair collision between a sUAS and manned aircraft in the United States. In February 2018, a video of a sUAS maneuvering around a passenger jetliner on approach to a Las Vegas airport went viral on YouTube. Just months later, a helicopter instructor pilot reported performing evasive maneuvers to avoid colliding with a sUAS, resulting in a non-fatal crash. From 2014 to 2018 the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recorded 6,117 reports of near encounters between manned and unmanned aircraft within the NAS (Government Accountability Office [GAO], 2018). In their report, the GAO (2018) highlighted the need for additional operational data to aid the FAA’s management of safety risks posed by unmanned aircraft. The purpose of this study was to evaluate aviation interference and safety hazards caused by unmanned aircraft at an airport in Class C airspace. Using a passive RF sUAS detection device known as the AeroScope, the authors collected sUAS operations data for 13 days at Daytona Beach International Airport in Florida. While the study was limited to DJI-manufactured sUAS, the results yielded detailed operational information on 190 sUAS flights that had been conducted during the sampling period. The authors identified several operator behaviors including preferred sUAS models, flight days and times, common operating locations, and operational altitudes. Operational data was compared against published FAA UAS Facility Maps (UASFM) to examine potential risk areas. Additionally, sUAS detections were compared against historical ADS-B information to examine for potential midair collisions, yielding several notable case studies. The authors evaluated the effectiveness of existing geofencing infrastructure and provided recommendations for integration with the Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) system. The paper culminates with a proposal for integrating LAANC usage data into existing aviation information sharing infrastructure to improve manned pilot situational awareness of sUAS activity within the NAS

Improved Survival after Heart Failure: A Community-based Perspective

Background: Heart failure is a highly prevalent, morbid, and costly disease with a poor long-term prognosis. Evidence-based therapies utilized over the past 2 decades hold the promise of improved outcomes, yet few contemporary studies have examined survival trends in patients with acute heart failure. Objectives: The primary objective of this population-based study was to describe trends in short and long-term survival in patients hospitalized with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF). A secondary objective was to examine patient characteristics associated with decreased long-term survival. Methods and Results: We reviewed the medical records of 9,748 patients hospitalized with ADHF at all 11 medical centers in central Massachusetts during 1995, 2000, 2002, and 2004. Patients hospitalized with ADHF were more likely to be elderly and to have been diagnosed with multiple comorbidities in 2004 compared with 1995. Over this period, survival was significantly improved in-hospital, and at 1, 2, and 5 years post-discharge. Five-year survival rates increased from 20% in 1995 to 28% in 2004. Although survival improved substantially over time, older patients and patients with chronic kidney disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, anemia, low body mass index, and low blood pressures had consistently lower post-discharge survival rates than patients without these comorbidities. Conclusion: Between 1995 and 2004, patients hospitalized with ADHF have become older and increasingly comorbid. Although there has been a significant improvement in survival among these patients, their long-term prognosis remains poor, as fewer than 1 in 3 patients hospitalized with ADHF in 2004 survived more than 5 years