Sly Fox Mission 21 has all the trappings of a smash hit reality television series with a technological innovation that may one day save the lives of warfighters across the joint services.
Although it was never filmed or broadcast, the drama, technology, and names of the seven junior scientists and engineers are real.
Hundreds of Navy civilian and military personnel witnessed this reality as the mission culminated with a technological capability demonstration on the Potomac River Test Range, June 15.
“One of the secrets to the Sly Fox Program’s success is the makeup of the team — using scientists and engineers with fresh perspectives from a wide array of technical disciplines helps identify solutions that otherwise may not be apparent,” said Kevin Cogley, head of the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) Chemical, Biological, and Radiological (CBR) Detection Branch.
Similar to reality TV, the Sly Fox members took time to get to know each other, including their strengths and weaknesses, as they worked to make the warfighter’s urgent need for an early warning CBR detection capability — adaptable to various unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) — a reality.
“The Sly Fox program serves as an outstanding experience accelerator for members our workforce,” said Dale Sisson, NSWCDD deputy technical director. “By presenting the Sly Fox teams with real world challenges and schedules, we are able to allow them to gain valuable experience into what it takes to support our warfighters.”
The team of mentors — senior NSWCDD scientists and engineers — ensured a strong focus on technical rigor as they taught the Sly Fox team how to perform under pressure.
“The program is challenging, both to the home organization and to the employee,” said Mary Collings, head of the NSWCDD Gun Prototyping and Rapid Fielding Branch and supervisor of one of the Mission 21 team members. “It enables employees to experience the development of a system from beginning to end. They start with requirements and finish by demonstrating a product.”
The intensive collaboration resulted in a system called SCAPEGOAT, otherwise known as “Senses CBR Agents Pre-Engagement and Goes Over All Terrain”. The modular CBR detection system accommodates multiple sensor modules across multiple UAV platforms, enabling Sailors to better protect themselves from the increasing frequency of CBR attacks by relaying threat data to command and control assets.
Throughout the demonstration, spectators looked at the horizon over the Potomac River and viewed monitors to see the SCAPEGOAT system onboard a commercial octocopter UAS platform detect and report the presence of chemical simulants.
Source: South Potomac Pilot