U.S. Surveillance Blimp Fights HarshCriticism by Richard S.Ehrlich
BANGKOK, Thailand — AnArlington, Virginia-based company is defending its harshlycriticized US $ 9.7 million sale of a helium-filled blimp,equipped with infrared thermal cameras, to Thailand’s armyfor hunting Islamist guerrillas in the south.
Scathingcriticism of the California-built Sky Dragon blimp, and itscameras, has been repeatedly published in Thailand’s mediaduring recent weeks, and voiced by worried politicians.
They describe the airship as a waste of money, not fullyable to fly on operational missions, and impractical forThailand’s low-intensity guerrilla war where Muslim rebelshide in hilly jungles.
“We have one last test flight toconduct, and it should be completed within the next week,”said Aria International’s President and CEO Mike “Bing”Crosby on March 10 in an e-mail interview.
“The onlyitem left is to utilize the long-range microwave system,from the airship to the receive site in the south ofThailand. All of the helicopter-mounted systems have passedall the tests, and the airship is able to transmit to allthe local sites.
“We just need to complete one last stepin the process,” Mr. Crosby said.
“It will be in thevery near future, and there is no risk of this notoccurring.”
Aeros, the blimp’s California-basedmanufacturers, said the Sky Dragon can reach an altitude of10,000 feet (3,048 meters).
“Yes it can fly at thataltitude if necessary. We will, however, very rarely fly atthat altitude as there is really no reason do to so,” AriaInternational’s Mr. Crosby said.
The system’s fivesurveillance cameras — two mounted on the airship, andthree installed on support helicopters — do not requirecomplex computer skills to determine what the picturesreveal, he said.
“There is no interpretation ofpictures, as it is simply like watching a very good TV witha very clear high-definition picture of exactly what isgoing on. The training is how to optimize the system, andbest utilize the various sensors.”
Aria International’sinitial contract is being fulfilled, and a second contractmay be signed soon, he said.
“Everything will have beenfulfilled after our last flight test this week. We arehopeful of a follow-on contract, that will keep us in
Thailand as advisors, trainers, and technicalrepresentatives for the entire system.”
He said, “TheRTA (Royal Thai Army) has asked us to train the pilots,system operators, mechanics and ground maintenance crew.”
On March 5, an official hand-over ceremony was staged inPattani province, but on March 10 Mr. Crosby said, “apartial hand-over has occurred” while the surveillancesystem was being completed.
Photoprovided by Aria International
In aninterview reply earlier in March, Mr. Crosby said: “Thedemand to fly the ship daily is there, but it’s pointless tofly it if the entire surveillance system is not operational.
Asked what parts were not operational, Mr. Crosbyreplied: “I cannot give you the details on the surveillance’system’ being installed. This is a confidential issue withthe RTA, and I hope you understand the sensitivity.
“There are actual ‘bad guys’ in the south of Thailand, andthe Army is actually working to catch them.”
The blimpcan function, he said.
“It is performing the missions ofproviding surveillance to the RTA. The full capability ofthe airship and the cameras are being employed right now.
“The cameras are able to downlink information to amobile command vehicle…for field commanders responding toincidents or on patrol with the airborne assets.
“Thedownlink can also send pictures real-time to a number ofother intel centers and operational command locations,” Mr.Crosby said.
The blimp’s nylon-based skin, however, hassuffered problems.
“There was, on a routine inspection,a hole that developed during the deflation of the ship inpreparing it to move from U-Tapao to the south” Mr. Crosbysaid.
“The manufacturer, in accordance with the warrantyof the ship, came to Thailand and assisted us in the repairsprior to inflation in the south.”
The problem was”solved by repair of the material that holds the helium. Theship is in perfect working order today.”
Photoprovided by Aria International
To flythe Sky Dragon blimp, “there is a need for ongoing helium tobe provided, but it is at the cost of approximately 200,000baht (6,000 U.S. dollars) per month,” he said.
The fivedigital V-14MSII cameras were manufactured by AxsysTechnologies (axsys.com), based in GrassValley, California, which was “recently acquired by GeneralDynamics,” he said.
Proud of the V-14 camera’s spyingability, its “specs” document displayed a color photographof a man in a book-lined room, using a desktop computer.
Photo provided by AriaInternational
“This man — in anapartment in Los Angeles — would be extremely surprised tolearn that we can read his computer screen from a movinghelicopter flying past his window at around one kilometerfrom his building,” the V-14 camera’s document said.
TheV-14 camera system was demonstrated “most recently atBlackwater’s facility in Moyock North Carolina and ManassasPark, Virginia, as well as Nellis Air Force Base in LasVegas and SOFEX in Jordan,” the document said.
“Yes, thecameras as an entire entity are controlled as an export itemby the U.S. Department of State Defense Trade Controlssection, which also coordinates with the Department ofDefense,” Mr. Crosby said from Arlington, Virginia, duringthe interview.
He pointed to U.S. export regulationsposted on the State Department’s website (pmddtc.state.gov).
“Yes,these cameras are approved for release to the Royal ThaiArmy only at this time.”
The blimp’s laptop-linked,high-definition, zoom cameras “have infra-red/thermalcapability” and “are mounted on the airship and in use,” Mr.Crosby said.
Photoprovided by Aria International
Thefat oval blimp has an enclosed gondola constructed fromaluminum alloys, attached underneath.
It allows a pilotto fly the Sky Dragon and relay pictures from its cameras tonearby helicopters, vehicles and buildings.
“AriaInternational Incorporated (aria-int.com) is the primecontractor in the contract with the Royal Thai Army (RTA),”Mr. Crosby said.
“There were five surveillance cameraspurchased, [including] two that are installed and working onthe Worldwide Aeros A-40D Sky Dragon Airship, and threeadditional cameras on RTA helo’s,” he said, referring tothree support helicopters.
Aeros (aerosml.com) manufactures theSky Dragon blimp in Montebello, California.
Thesingle-pilot, 153-foot (46.6-meter) long Sky Dragon uses athree-blade propeller for a maximum flight speed of 51 mph(82 kmh).
It should be able to reach an altitude of10,000 feet (3,048 meters), Aeros said.
Asked for abreakdown of the U.S. dollars 9.7 million price tag for theblimp, plus the cameras, maintenance, and training for Thaisto fly and use the equipment, Mr. Crosby replied:
“Airship equals 2.8 million. Cameras and downlink equipmentequals 6 million.”
Additional costs included the “priceof one armored mobile command vehicle,” plus installation,integration and other investments.
Aria International(aria-int.com) said itscontract included “training,” “continuing maintenancetasks,” “construction of an airship hangar,” and”construction of a 12-room hotel for the Aria staff workingat the Army base,” near the southern town of Pattani.
“To build a prolonged peace process, there should be other,and better, ways to do it on such a large budget,” saidWorrawit Basu, a senator on the Senate’s military committee.
Thailand’s two English-language newspapers, The BangkokPost and The Nation, mocked the blimp’s cost, purpose andflying ability.
“The Bangkok Post was horriblyincorrect, and made incredible mistakes bordering on liableand clearly unprofessional reporting,” Mr. Crosby said.
An editorial cartoon, published in the Bangkok Post on March6, showed the Sky Dragon leaking gusts of helium despiteseveral sloppy patches, while Thai soldiers clumsilygrappled to control it and a senior officer asked: “Does itwork?”
“Questions remain as to whether the Sky Dragoncan function as planned, whether it is an effective toolagainst insurgency — or is it a bigger sham than theGT200?” the Bangkok Post reported.
The useless GT200 isan unrelated alleged hoax involving a British company whichconvinced Thailand’s military, police and other securitypersonnel to spend more than US $ 24 million on pieces ofcardboard which were inserted into empty plastic containers,each decorated with a collapsible antenna.
The hundredsof GT200s were touted as bomb and drug detectors, but wererecently revealed to be toys.
The government belatedlydenounced the GT200, but Thailand’s confused militarycontinues to use them while searching for bombs in thesouth, where more than 4,000 people have died on all sidessince 2004, in the worsening Muslim separatist insurgency.
While Thailand continues to wrestle with the GT200scandal, the English-language Nation newspaper blasted theblimp in an editorial headlined: “Bloated Armed Forces WasteValuable Resources.”
It said: “Besides the fact that theairship makes a big target, its sheer size and slow speedwould easily tip off insurgents who reside in just aboutevery village in the deep south.
“Of course, theinsurgency in the south has become a great excuse to buymore hardware,” said the editorial.
Reporters werebanned on March 5 during the blimp’s official hand-over toThailand’s 15th Infantry Regiment in the southern provinceof Pattani.
“The procurement committee must takeresponsibility if the airship cannot fly,” Army Chief Gen.Anupong Paojinda was quoted as saying on March 5.
“If wecannot accept it, we will not pay the final amount to thecompany.”
This Southeast Asian nation is a staunchnon-NATO ally of the U.S.
The military toppled anelected government in a September 2006 coup, before allowinga return to elections, and still dominates Thailand’spolitics and government spending.
The blimp contract wassigned in April 2009.
Three months later, Aria said in amedia statement’s headline: “Blimps Find Favor as Poor Man’sSatellite,” and hailed the deal as a success.
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Richard S Ehrlich is a Bangkok-based journalist who hasreported news from Asia since 1978. He is co-author of”Hello My Big Big Honey!”, a non-fiction book ofinvestigative journalism. His web page is asia-correspondent.110mb.com
(Copyright 2010 Richard SEhrlich)
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