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Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) systems record an aircraft's in-flight data. They are often used by the military for aerial combat training and analysis.
ACMI usually includes 4 major subsystems.
Autonomous air combat maneuvering instrumentation (AACMI) are second-generation GPS-based ACMI systems.
Unlike first-generation ACMI systems, which use ground radars to track and record the position of the aircraft on the range, AACMI systems use aircraft-mounted satellite navigation systems such as the US NAVSTAR GPS system. Recording of aircraft tracks can therefore be independent of ground-based radar, and are sometimes called range-less or autonomous. Radio transmissions from the aircraft report its position in three dimensions to other aircraft on the range and also to ground control. This enables real-time air-to-air exercises to be carried out and also complex ground debriefs (after-action review or AAR) based on data recorded at the time. Such de-briefs involve the use of modern graphics and display techniques that can bring out training and other points to aircrew and ground staff. Newer AACMI systems are hand-held units that can be mounted to the dash of any aircraft, vehicle, vessel, or person, and can perform all the functions of legacy ACMI systems.
Instrumentation is a collective term for measuring instruments, used for indicating, measuring, and recording physical quantities. It is also a field of study about the art and science about making measurement instruments, involving the related areas of metrology, automation, and control theory. The term has its origins in the art and science of scientific instrument-making.
LANTIRN is a combined navigation and targeting pod system for use on the United States Air Force fighter aircraft—the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon manufactured by Martin Marietta. LANTIRN significantly increases the combat effectiveness of these aircraft, allowing them to fly at low altitudes, at night and under-the-weather to attack ground targets with a variety of precision-guided weapons.
Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose.
The Lockheed Martin Sniper is a targeting pod for military aircraft that provides positive target identification, autonomous tracking, GPS coordinate generation, and precise weapons guidance from extended standoff ranges.
The automatic identification system (AIS) is an automatic tracking system that uses transceivers on ships and is used by vessel traffic services (VTS). When satellites are used to receive AIS signatures, the term Satellite-AIS (S-AIS) is used. AIS information supplements marine radar, which continues to be the primary method of collision avoidance for water transport. Although technically and operationally distinct, the ADS-B system is analogous to AIS and performs a similar function for aircraft.
An airborne collision avoidance system operates independently of ground-based equipment and air traffic control in warning pilots of the presence of other aircraft that may present a threat of collision. If the risk of collision is imminent, the system recommends a maneuver that will reduce the risk of collision. ACAS standards and recommended practices are mainly defined in annex 10, volume IV, of the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Much of the technology being applied to both military and general aviation today has been undergoing development by NASA and other partners since the 1980s.
The International Cospas-Sarsat Programme is a satellite-aided search and rescue (SAR) initiative. It is organized as a treaty-based, nonprofit, intergovernmental, humanitarian cooperative of 45 nations and agencies. It is dedicated to detecting and locating emergency locator radio beacons activated by persons, aircraft or vessels in distress, and forwarding this alert information to authorities that can take action for rescue. Member countries support the distribution of distress alerts using a constellation of around 65 satellites orbiting the Earth which carry transponders and signal processors capable of locating an emergency beacon anywhere on Earth transmitting on the Cospas-Sarsat frequency of 406 MHz.
A Weapon Systems Officer (WSO), nicknamed "Wizzo", is an air flight officer directly involved in all air operations and weapon systems of a military aircraft.
Naval Air Facility El Centro or NAF El Centro is a United States Navy Naval Air Facility located approximately six miles (10 km) northwest of El Centro, in Imperial County, California. NAF El Centro is under the jurisdiction of Navy Region Southwest and serves both as temporary homeport to military units conducting air-to-air and bombing training, and as the winter training home of the Blue Angels aerobatics display team.
The Sukhoi Su-30MKK is a modification of the Sukhoi Su-30, incorporating advanced technology from the Sukhoi Su-35 variant. The Su-30MKK was developed by Sukhoi in 1997, as a result of a direct Request for tender between the Russian Federation and China. It is a heavy class, all-weather, long-range strike fighter, and like the Sukhoi Su-30, comparable to the American McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle. The Sukhoi Su-30MK2 is a further improvement to Su-30MKK with upgraded avionics and maritime strike capabilities. The MKK and MK2 are currently operated by the People's Liberation Army Air Force, Indonesian Air Force, Vietnam People's Air Force, Venezuelan Air Force and the Ugandan Air Force.
A chartplotter is a device used in marine navigation that integrates GPS data with an electronic navigational chart (ENC).
The Ault Report, or more formally, the Air-to-Air Missile System Capability Review, was a sweeping study of United States Navy air-to-air missile performance during the period of 1965 to 1968, conducted by Navy Captain Frank Ault. The study was initiated at the behest of Admiral Tom Moorer, Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), who had taken office in August 1967. He was disturbed by the dismal performance of Navy air-to-air missiles in engagements with North Vietnamese fighter jets. Admiral Moorer tasked the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIRSYSCOM) to conduct "an in-depth examination of the entire process by which Air-to-Air missile systems are acquired and employed" and further directed that Ault be placed in charge of the effort.
The Joint Precision Airdrop System (JPADS) is an American military airdrop system which uses the Global Positioning System (GPS), steerable parachutes, and an onboard computer to steer loads to a designated point of impact (PI) on a drop zone (DZ). The JPADS family of systems consists of several precision airdrop systems, ranging from extra light to heavy payloads. JPADS is used in conjunction with mission planning software that resides on a laptop. The function of this mission planning software includes computing release points, weather forecasting, acquiring measurements of wind velocity, altitude, air pressure, and temperature. It can also receive weather updates and en route mission changes through satellite links.
Multiservice tactical brevity codes are codes used by various military forces. The codes' procedure words, a type of voice procedure, are designed to convey complex information with a few words.
Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) is an aviation surveillance technology and form of electronic conspicuity in which an aircraft determines its position via satellite navigation or other sensors and periodically broadcasts its position and other related data, enabling it to be tracked. The information can be received by air traffic control ground-based or satellite-based receivers as a replacement for secondary surveillance radar (SSR). Unlike SSR, ADS-B does not require an interrogation signal from the ground or from other aircraft to activate its transmissions. ADS-B can also receive point-to-point by other nearby equipped ADS-B equipped aircraft to provide traffic situational awareness and support self-separation.
ALAS is a Serbian long-range multipurpose wire guided missile system developed by the private company EdePro and the state-owned Yugoimport SDPR. The ALAS missile system was developed primarily for missions against tanks, armored vehicles, fortifications, command posts, low-flying helicopters, coastal ships, industrial facilities and bridges. It can be deployed by any suitable platform including helicopters, armored vehicles, small ships and infantry. The guidance system is based on video/infrared technology, with the missile connected to the launcher by a fiber-optic cable. The ALAS flies at low altitude and has small radar and infrared (heat) signatures due to using a turbofan motor instead of a turbojet. In recent years, the ALAS platform has found a secondary use as a UAV.
The AN/ASQ-213HARM targeting system (HTS) is a targeting pod mounted to either of the engine inlet hardpoints of an F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft. It enables the aircraft to track the location of hostile radar systems in any weather, and identify them to allow for usage of the AGM-88 HARM missile or other air-to-ground weapons. It greatly assists in Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) and Destruction of Enemy Air Defenses (DEAD) operations, where surface-to-air missile (SAM) sites are directly attacked or threatened, and therefore suppressed, by aircraft carrying anti-radar missiles and other munitions. While the firing of anti-radar missiles in Harm As Sensor (HAS) mode, an HTS pod greatly reduces the workload of the pilot, increases the precision of the HARM, and allows HARMs to be fired while pointed away from the SAM site being attacked when in Equation of Motion (EOM) mode.
Traffic information service – broadcast (TIS–B) is an aviation information service that allows pilots to see aircraft that are not emitting ADS-B data but have a basic transponder.
The 46th Test Group was a United States Air Force group active from 1992 to 2012. It was last active with the 46th Test Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. The 46th Test Group was stationed as a tenant unit at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, throughout its existence. It was disbanded on 18 July 2012, and replaced by the 96th Test Group in an administrative reorganization.
The Smart Onboard Data Interface Module (SMODIM) is an integrated device once used by the United States Army and foreign militaries for live simulated weapons training on military platforms. The SMODIM was the primary component of the Longbow Apache Tactical Engagement Simulation System that provides weapons systems training and collective Force-on-Force live training participation.