DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Secretary: L. F. Bott

TECHNICAL REPORT 9

DIVISION OF NATIONAL MAPPING Director: B. P. Lambert

AU.SJ. IC:t !15:J, 8.C-f ('14)

A·U5,Z II, Cf

HELICOPTER BORNE TRAVERSING

FOR MAPPING CONTROL.

April -November 1968

by

J. Witzand. P.H. Langhorne and R.A. Ford.

CANBERRA. AUSTRALIA JUNE 1970

NM /MISC69/245

3.

CONTENTS

PAGE

1. INTRODUCTION 5

2o SURVEY PROGRAMME 6

3o SIZE OF SURVEY PARTY 8

4o AIR I NSPECTIONS 9

5o PROGRAMMING OF CONTRACTS 1 3

6. ·· TYPES OF HELICOPTERS 14

7. TRAVERSING PROGRESS 17

8. BASIC FIELD PROCEDURE 19

9. MANAGEMENT 22

10. SPOT PHOTOGRAPHY BY HELICOPTER 24

11 CONTRACTS FOR HELICOPTER CHARTER 26

12 0 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 29

5 .

1. INTRODUCTION

Large areas in the western half of Western Australia are well

suited to Tellurometer survey.

The mapping programme for 1968 required field surveys for

1:100,000 mapping to be undertaken in the area' bounded by P§,rallels

of latitude 23°s ana 27°s and by the coast and meridian 120 E,

except for the Mount Newman 1:250,000 map area which had been surveyed

the previous season.

Some of this work was done with helicopter support, and this

report describes some of the problems associated with the use of this

aircraft.

6 0

2 . SURVEY PROGRAMME AND SPECIFICATION

The suxvey was planned to provide points of control along specified parallels and meridians at each degree or half degree position, within tolerances of one mile in latitude and four miles in longitude of the desired position; and wh~rever possible such degree and half degree marks were to form part of a continuous traverse, and were not to be the termi nal station of spur connection.

Distance measurement was to be by MRA2 cathode ray tube Tellurometers, and traverse angles and azimuths were to be measured by Wild T3 theodol i tes in accordance with the following observation proceduxes :-

Distance

Two measurements were required; one forward and one back. The difference between the two measurements was not to exceed 1 :75,000. Fine readings were to be read on 16 cavities, and ground swing was not to exceed six millimicroseconds.

Angular Work:

Azimuths

Horizontal angles were to be read within the per i od of one hour before and one hour after sunseto Six sets of six zeroes were to be observed on one nighto Spreads were not to exceed ei gh t seconds of arc for each set, and two seconds of arc for the me ans of the six sets. Vertical angles were to be read between 1400 and 1600 hours local mean time for all lines longer than ten miles. Vertical angles were to consist of two sets of eight paintings and were to be observed simultaneously at both ends, with at least half an hour between each set. Screens were to be used ,at all times to protect the instrument from sun and windo

Simultaneous reciprocal azimuths were to be obs erved on every fourth line of the traverse and on all spur lines o Six sets of faux zeroes were to be observed on one night within two hours of suns et o

All stations were required to be pirmanently marked. The main station mark was to consist of a ½" diameter copper tube, galvanised iron pipe or steel fence post set in concrete 7" square and 12" deep and painted white. In addition two reference marks and one witness post were to be placed in concrete.

1.

To facilitate the transfer of ground positions by differential stereoscope to mapping photography at a scale of 1: 80,000, . control stations were to be photographed from an aircraft with a hand held Nikon camera fitted with a 28 millimetre lens, at altitudes of 500, 1,500 and 3,000 feet. This is called "spot photography" (see chapter 1o)o

The one degree or half degree stations were required to be specially marked for this spot photography,and photographed by helicopter when practicable.

3. SIZE OF SURVEY PARTY

The field party was made up of staff from the Melbourne office of the Geodetic Survey Branch, and consisted of:

One Surveyor One senior technical officer grade 1 One technical officer grade 1 Four technical assistants grade 2 Seven field assistants.

For ground support the party was equipped with:

Five International 1½ ton four-wheel-drive C1300 trucks

Two International 1½ ton four-wheel-drive AB130 trucks

One forward control Land-Rover 1½ ton Series IIB

Two Bedford 3 ton four-wheel-drive trucks.

Attached to this party was one Bell 47G-4 helicopter, on hire from a charter company for two periods of 40 and 45 days, manned by one pilot and one maintenance engineero

•

4 o PRELIMINARY AIR INSPECTIONS

The country is generally hilly enough for traverses to be

run without towers, except in the coastal areas .

F0om earlier expe rienc e , in similar country north of latitude 24 S, it was expected that timber cover would be light, requiring little or no clearingo ·

An old triangulation netwo r k , observed at the turn of the century by the Department of Lands and Surveys of Western Australia , covers 1:1. fairly wide area of the western half of Western Australia, and it was intended to re-occupy and co - ordinate some of the old stations, as was done in 1967 in the Hamersley Range area, so that the old work could be recomputed and used for the control of the 1: 100 , 000 mapping programmeo

A map inspection in the office r evealed that access would be difficult , and likely to be expensive in terms of time and money due to break- downs of vehicles, and it appeared that helicopter transport, operated from sui tably placed main base camps, would be the most economi cal method of transport for this type of countryo

In order to assess the access problems more fully , to select the best traversing routes, and to check the timber cover, two air inspections by light aircraft were carried outo

The fi5st inspection in Jaeuary 19~8 . covered the trav ­erses for the 24 S parallel, the 115 30 ' meridian , and the sur­round for the Yaringa 1: 250 , 000 map areao

0 . The second igspection, flown in August 1968, covered the 27 S parallel from 1~5 30 ' E to the first order traverse through Wiluna, at about 120 10 ' E.

The reports follow.

H

AIR INSPECTION NO o 1

SECOND ORDER TRAVERSING

1968

See Figure 1

Thi s inspection was for second order traversing control for the Yari.nga, Edel, Wooramel, Shark Bay, Kennedy Range, Quobba, Winning Pool, Mi nilyafl Edmund and Turee Creek 1:250 11 000 map areasa

It was carrie d out by Messrso Wi tzan.d~ Langhorne and Ford on 25-27 January 1968, in a single engine Cherokee 260 9 on chart er from Geral dton Air Charter Ptyo Ltd o

Number of hours flown: 16 hrso 45 mi nso

Costg $630 (hire of ai rcraft)Q

Helico pter traversing

F5om the eas t ern end of the Turee Creek map area on parallel 24 S 9 c ommencing at s tation PW 13 or PW 14j a helicopter traverse can be run with fairly long lines, from 14 t o 45 mi les 9

to .t he ol d triangulation stati on Mta Agamemnon, and thence through the old triangulat ion to about 11 4°J0° Eo Between this point and KAP 19/KAP 20 on the west coas t~ there are low sandr i dges and this may mean shorter l.ineso

The north=south section on 115°30° E oan be traversed through the old triangulat.i on to K35 on 25°s parallel, thence to 26°s, although it may be necessary to swing east at 25°30°s to avoid scrub covered broken country of e~ual heighto

Estimate of contract peri od g 40 days Suggested starting point ~ Mount Vernon Suggested terminal point Carnarv on

Ground traversing

On the 26°s parall el of l at itude~ bounded in the east by 115°30 °E and in the west by GC8 9 there are a number of alternative routes for vehicle traversing, i n general followi ng the parallel and les s than f ive miles south of i to It i s undulating sandy c ountry wit'h heavy scrub and timber up to 25 f eet higho Owing to the nature of the count r y 9 it is best to travers e on the road or on exi sting seismic lines previously cl eared for seismic surveyso A number of bores are situated on the road and along fence lineso I t may be necessar y to use t owers but thi s can only be determined by ground i nspect iono ·

Jrack making and use of towe~

Section Ao Thi s is on the eastern edge of the Yari nga map areao It is int er spersed by sandy r i dges and covered. wt t h dense scrub

22°

0

23

MINILVA

CAANAAVON

25°

27°

114° 115°3d

ONSLOW

YANREY 4

I .a

4r IA ~-6 ~

WINNING

POOL

WOORAMEL

YARINGA

C

AJANA

• G£RA\.l)T011&

A

8

WYLOO

~ ,-, , '

',-o. A-A __ o-' .. ·------~ .-o·--

EDMUNO '4- --- TUREE • -~-"CREEK ' pW\')

•

I I I J I

I J

• ...."" __ _

NEWMAN

d----0-:; ... ..._-:.-:: .... _ ... _.a,

\Pw14

• M1'. VE:A~ON H. S .

EX\STING TRAVERSES F\RST OROER ., .. SECONO ORD&R. o- - -- --o

0\..0 W .A. TRIANGULA.TION 5"TATION.S e

AIR \N.'5PECTION

FIGURE I. AIR INSPECTION I , JANUARY 1968

and timber up to 25 feet higho The track-r:1craping tractor* could be used on this section to provide main a ccess along the meridian, and towers may be needed.

Section Bo This is sandridge country in the northern part, clay­:i:;:ans and ridges in the south. The southern part is subject to inundation after heavy rain.

Section C. This is sandy country with dense mulga and timber up to 30 feet high, slightly undulatingo On the section west of the highway the mulga is heavier, but trees are more scattered and less tallo There is no access at all on the eastern side of the highway and this would require track making by '. a National Mapping partyo Towers would be needed, to · see over the intervening undulations. On the western side it may be possible to use the existing east-west track and travel along fences to Cooloomia homestead (abandoned), and to the west coast where the traverse would join the existing first order traverse at GC1 e On this western section one or two towers may be requiredo

Short Connections. The point 24°30 1 s, 114°E could be established by a traverse connection from KAP 23 , possibly in two lines , tot­alling about 20 miles.

The point 25°~ 114°E could be established in the same way from GC18A, in one line with the aid of one tower , or in two lines without a towero

* A Massey-Ferguson 135 petrol engined tractor having two blades. The front blade having a triangular shape and the rear blade being a normal scraper. Both blades could be raisetj or lowered . The front tyres were normal size while the rear ones were over­sized, completely smooth and filled with watero O~eration speed was 2 mopoho and a track navigable at 8 mopoho was the result.

12°

AIR INSPECTION NO o 2

SECOND ORDER TRAVERSING

See Figure 2

1o Beginning . at the south east corner of the Yaringa map are~,a low level flight was made eas t along the 27°s parallel of latitudeo Hills which may serve as suitable traverse stations were marked on the 1:250 , 000 maps,and no te s were made concerning the amount of clearing to be expected on each hill , and places to land a clearing party to cut helipads at the proposed station siteso The low level flight also provided a general knowledge of the condition of roads and tracks along the_ length of the traverseo Any stations which could easily be re-ached by vehicle were noted. • r '

2o The inspection confirmed that the country is suitable for traversing, provided a helicopter is used . Four hills ap­peared to require clearing, one in the west, one iri the middle and two in the easto The country is still wet, but provided no more rain falls it is not expected to delay the work. The country flattens out in the east, and this could slow down progress.

3o On the way back a high level flight was made to get a general picture of the area to be traversed,and to locate acces,s roads and homesteads over a wide :areao

Total distance flown on inspection 720 miles Total hours flown: 8 hrso 25 mins. Cost of Charter: $3030

7

112°30

2so I

I 28°

I

I 27°

I

25°

' 114°00 llS0 3d l17°0d 115°3d 120°06 121°30

\ I WOORAMEL GLENBURGl-l ROBINSON I P[AK / I NABBERU

\"'- \'-- I\

\~\1J

~ I I\

I

YAR\NGA .

AJANA I

I RANGE

8EL.£LE JJMCGLENGARRY BYRO K6 r.,

_/

MURGOO I CUE/ I SANDSTONE I SIRSAMUEL

•'MC 16

&-----8 EXISTING TRAVERSE 15T ORDER

0--0 EXISTING TRAVERSE 2 .. 0 0RDER

FIGURE 2. AIR INSPECTION 2, AUGUST 1968

I

13 0

5. PROGRAMMING OF HELICOPTER CONTRACTS

Because of the cost of helicopter time, traversing part-ies have to work at hign speed .

Few comforts are available. Observing parties are flown into the stations with limited camping , equipment and food supplies and stay there overnight , and on many occasions are required to spend an average of five days per week away from their vehicles.

To avoid straining ,the parties too much, it was decided to arrange the helicopter work in two separate contracts, about six weeks apart .

It was proposed to use the time between the contracts:

1. To carry out traverse connections which are best done by vehicle.

2. To service equipment and vehicles which after 6-8 weeks intensive work are usually in need of attention.

The first contract was scheduled for 8 May - 21 June 1969; the second for 5 August - 25 September 1968.

All went according to plan , except that on 16 June, five days before the end of the first contract, four inches of rain fell, bogging the party at Muggon homestead until 4 July. The starting date of the second contract was consequently put off from 5 to 19 August.

Between contracts , parties established traverse stations in the Shark Bay and Edel map areas and on the south edge of the Yaringa area. In0 additioB, they marked 41 stations for spot pho to­graphy between 24 and 27 S parallels of latitudeo

14 0

60 SELECTION OF HELICOPTERS

In choosing a helicopter for traversing operations, the main factors ~o con~ider are:

1. Ability to land in small clearings in rugged country.

2. Capacity to carry an adequate payload at favourable competitive cost.

3. Reliabilityo

Some of t he different types of helicopter avail ab l e f or this class of charter work from various helic9pter operators in Australia, are tabul ated in Tabl e 1.

The available payload is arrived at as follows:

BELL 47G-4

Empty weight 1850 lbso Pilqt 170 lbs. Total fuel 342 lbs. Oil 20 lbs

2382 lbs. Maximum take-off weight 2950 lbs.

Available payload 568 lbs.

The equipmen~ and two men needed for the mark i ng and observing of one second order control station, weigh about· 1-1 j5 lbs.

The following equipment may be required at a traverse st ationo

Technical equipment

Theodolite, Wild T3 Tripod 9 Wild T3 Observing screen complete Li ghting set, steel tape ~ plumb bobs , etc . Tellurometer (without box) Tripod , Tellurometer Two 12 volt Tellurometer batteries Psychrometer Altime t er Facit cal culator Lamps (1 . Lucas, 1 daylight) Helio Two tripods for l amps or helios Radio, Traeger complete with aerial Stationery box Charging motor 'Honda' plus 1 gallon petrol

Approximate Weight

35 lbs 15 lbs 50 lbs 15 lbs 48 lbs 15 lbs

105 lbs 8 l bs 8 lbs

20 lbs 15 lbs

8 lbs 14 lbs 50 lbs 20 lbs 45 lbs 471 l b s

,.

AVAILABLE PAYLOAD IN LBS

WITH FULL FUEL TANKS ANO RANGE TO BE

TYPE SPEED PILOT ABOARD RANGE IN KEPT IN NUMBER

OF IN NAUTICAL RESERVE OF INFORMATION

AIRCRAFT KNOTS INFORMATION SUPPLIED SUPPLIED BY

MILES IN FLYING PASSENGERS BY ONE OF THE

DEPARTMENT TIME (MIN.)

HELICOPTER OPERATORS OF CIVIL AVIATION

BELL 47G-4 60-63 568 568 133 45 2

BELL 47G-381 60-63 468 484 133 45 2

BELL 47J-2 65 441 470 112 45 3

FAIRCHILD- HILLER 100-1'30 596 602 282 45 4

FH 1100

TABLE I.

150

Marking equipment Approximate

Axe Shovel C~ment, lime, witness post, copper tubes, paint, marking dies , 2 gallons water etc.

Camping equipment

Swags (2) Stretchers (2) Personal gear (2) Cooking and Cutlery Food (2 persons, 3 days plus emergency reserve) Water, 10 gallons (in 2 gallon containers) ~ent, 'Kimberley'

Personnel

Observer and booker (each about 170 lbs) :

5 lbs 5 1bs

40 lbs

70 lbs 24 lbs 25 lbs 10 lbs 55 lbs 50 lbs 40 lbs

weight

50 lbs

274 lbs

340 lbs

1135 lbs

This list would be close to the maximum weight ever taken by a two-man observing party a

In the planning of helicopter work in Western Austraiia, 1100 lbs was adopted as an average load per station .

For a load of 1100 lbs the Bell 47G-4 is the best heli­copter from an operational point of view. It can lift 1100 lbs in two trips. A Bell 47G-3B1 would need three.

Temperature changes affect the payload. The G-4 heli­copter's availaple payload is shown as 568 lbso This is under average conditions, with full tankso Hot conditions decrease the payloado ' However, for short journeys it may not· be necessary to carry a !ull load of, fuel, whi?h weighs 7.2 lbs per gallon~

Having to make two trips has its advantageso· Field staff can always radio back to the base camp, between trips, ·for additional ~quipment to be put on the second load, if they find they have overlooked certain items, or if, for example, on inspec­tion of the observing site it is found that additional marking material is requiredo For these reasons . the first flight was usually loaded to maximum capacity.

For safety reasons radio, f ood, water and medical sup­plies were always included on the first load, and the observer was instructed to contact the base as soon as possible after his ar­rival to signal "all well11 o

For the traversing project described in this report a Bell 47.G- 4 ,helicopter was employed on both contracts.

1 6 .

The Department of Civil Avia tion ' s specifica tions on helipad size , approach gradients and dimensions of the surroun d ­ing area , for mapping projects , are indica ted in the f ollowi ng D. C. A. diagram (not to scale) .

f-- TOUCHDOWN AREA ----i T iG .,, ::, .,, ..J "' "- w :r: ...

w ... ~ APPROACH GRADl l!NT Cl

i 0 •o• "' "' 0 0 ... ... "- 0 0 "' u :::; N

HELICOPT ER LENGTH PLUS 20' l[

Figure 3 . D. C. A. Diagram showing require ments for Helipads .

The dimensions of the Bell 47G- 4 are :

Le ngth - 43.21 feet Width - 37 . 13 f eet (length of rotor blade)

Two landing paths a re required , not less t han 150° apart .

The helipa d touchdown area is not to slop e more tha n 7° in a ny dire ction.

17 .

7o TRAVERSING PROGRESS

The helicopter party r eached Mount Vernon by vehicle on Tuesday 30 April 1968, and during the period 30 April - 7 May made preparat ions for the helicopter operationso

Flyi.ng,1 started on 8 Mayo

The Divis ion contracted for a Bell 47G-4 helicopter but the contractor started the charter with a smaller Bell 47G3-B1 helicopter , owing to the late arrival of the G-4 from Sydney . The G-3B1 was replaced by a G-4 on 17 Mayo

The G-3B1 was unserviceable for 3½ dayso However , once it was repaired , and the G-4 became available on 17 May, good progress was madeo

The work started at the first order station PW 13 near the 24°S par3-ll el of latitudeo It was soon found that a track along the 24 parallel, which was expected to be the main access route, was impassable after late summer stormso A l ong detour of about 300 miles by all vehicles was necessary for the first move westward o

The 24°s traverse, including spur trav erses to the centre of the Turree Creek, Edmund and Winning Pool 1: 250 9 000 map ~reas , and a conne ct ing traverse of about 100 miles to th~ existing station Y 5, reached the first order station KAP 10 on the coastal traverse on 1 June o

0 Ori 3 June traiersing started on the 11 5° 30 'E meridian at 24 S, and reached 27 Son 20 Juneo On the way a connection was made to t he first or der traverse at K 350 All reconnaissance was done by helico pter and in most cases personnel were landed by hel i copter o Owing to cloud it was not possible to get azimuth observations on all spur lineso

During June several inches of rain f ell i n the survey area o On 16 June one 3 ton Bedford truck and une 1½ ton Int er­national truck which were working north near NM:F/6 06 were cut off by raino These vehicles were later brought to withi n four miles of the main party but owing to long boggy patches could not be driven any further and had to be temporar i ly abandoned.

At the conclusion of t he contract the main party moved to the Muggon homestead area over boggy countryo This journey of ten miles , took five days .

The helicopter contract expired on 20 Juneo

Some statistics for this contract follow:

General progress :

Total mileage of traverses (including spur iines) 704 Stat ions occupied 41 Simultaneous reciprocal azimuths observed 7 Single end azimuths observed 7

JI L

Weekly Erogress:

Week Ended Stations Occupied

17 May 5 24 May 7 31 May 8

7 June 10 1'4 June 4 21 June 8

42

Length of stay at stations:

1 night ••••• 2 5% 2 nights ••.• 65% more than

2 nights .•.. 10%

HeliCOEter performance:

Days flown ••••.•• Days of unserviceability Bad weather •....•• Rest days •..•...

Tota l 45

Miles Traversed

90 164 131 137

68 114

704

The second helicopter contract included the traverse on t he 27°s parallel of latitude £ram 11 5°30 'E to the first order traverse t hrough Wiluna; and some traversing for the Nullagine and Mount Bruce map areas . In these two areas the helicopter was also employed on spot photography in conjunction with traversing. At the end of the contract the helicopter flew back to Meekatharra from Ashburton Downs taking many spot photographs on the way. The traversing techniques adopted on this contract were the same as those employed on the first contract. During this contract the helicopter was unserviceable for 8½ days in one continuous period.

T

Figure 4 shows the control points established by heli­copter traversing. Figure 5 shows the traverse closures at the various points of the f irst order network .

112"30' 2cf ,---

114D I I 5•.30' 117° 121°30'

21°1 I ti ~ I YARRIE ~ I I "'-:

Pr'RAMIO l"1ARBL£ SAR

22·1 161 ( 'I....._ I I I -=f~ NIT. BRUCE I ROY HILL

I \ I ... • ;1 ~ ,..... ,. I

I < .... I

23° I IL H=:lr- ~ ~DMUJ\l~ ..,.Y~~erc r=c:1< \ j ._\r'\.tl~~~

Roe.i;: l<T"SON

I IZ I_ -~j~OWN:..d ~ Ii -,It I -:s: ---24°

KENNl;;DY NIT. I ---,;,uoe.e. J.:Al-,lGE ?HIL\.lPS e,IJLL\:::~. •

25°

G.Ll.N e.o~c. H ROB,INSOIJ RAr-P.E

2',.

e,YRO MUGG

2,· I "' I I CUE I I SANDSlUNt. I Sllit\SA\11\UEL

I \l'l'_., .... MUR.C.-00

_\ 28°

FIRST ORDER TRAVERSES

EXISTING SECOND ORDER TRAVERSES

SECOND ORDER TRAVERSES 1968 (HELICOPTER)

MAP CONTROL POINTS 1968

FIGURE 4. MAP CONTROL ESTABLISHED BY HELICOPTER 1968

MISCLOSURE PW 13-KAP19 LAT. 21 FT. N. LONG. 13 FT. W.

AZIMUTH + 05'.'50 15 LINES 278 MILES

t1

\ \K35

s

K35 - Y5 LAT. 3 FT. N. LONG. I FT. W. AZIMUTH - 02'.'97 7 LINES 190 MILES

.,. "'I I'\. / L-...1'---,

.- .- ..-- I

MISCLOSURE K 35 - K 29 LAT. 6 FT. S. LONG. II FT E.

AZIMUTH - 02'.'59 13 LINES 305 MILES

FIGURE 5. TRAVERSE CLOSURES

-- FIRST ORDER TRAVERSES - - - EXISTING SECOND ORDER TRAVERSES

SECOND ORDER TRAVERSES 1968

KAP 19, PW 13, K 35, K 29, AND MT LAWRENCE WELLS ARE FIRST ORDER STATIONS, AUSTRALIAN GEODETIC DATUM 1966

Y5 IS A SECOND ORDER STATION

TRAVERSE COMPUTATIONS S .._ STARTING POINT

C CLOSING POINT

Scale 1 :6,000,000

MT. LAWRENCE WELLS - s

MISCLOSURE MT LAWRENCE WELLS - K29 LAT. 5 FT. S. LONG. II FT. W. AZIMUTH + 02'.'31 5 LINES 151 MILES

7

I

1 9.

8. BASIC FIELD PROCEDURE

Fuel was supplied to the helicopt~r by two 3 ton Bedfords. One of these vehicles carried only Avgas, about twenty 44 gallon drums; the other one carried marking equipment and motor vehicle fuel, and a reserve supply of seven drums of Avgas in case the first truck broke down. When fuel ran low, the vehicle which was employed wholly on carrying Avgas was sent to the nearest town to replenish supplies, and the reserve was used to supply the heli­copter for the two or three days involved.

For second order traversing along pre-selected meridians and parallels, two alternative procedures are available:

(i) Traverse along the line and have all control points on the main traverse.

(ii) Run the traverse where the topography makes it easiest and have spur lines into the control points.

Spur lines are difficult to check for gross errors, but in very flat or heavily timbered country, method (ii) may be the only practicable method. For exampl'e ~ where a range of hills is, found to run nearly parallel to the latitude but 10 miles north , . and all the control points are required out on a mulga plain, method (iiY ' would be used.

The reconnaissance was usually carried out by two people; the surveyor and a fie l d assistant. It is not advisable for the two party leaders to be in the aircraft together, in case of

}mishap. The gener'al procedure adopted for reconnaissance was to start at the junction station, select a hill which was in the desired direction and then fly to this hillo As each hill was selected its position was marked on the map. Stations were selec­ted. as far distant as possible, provided they were within heli­copter range. It was often possible for the reconnaissance party to clear the scrub and clean up 1the landing pad. However, if more than¾ hours clearing was involved the work was left to the obser­ving party or a clearing party.

A cross of white plastic tape or a pile of stones was +eft on the station, whether it was prominent or not, to ensure the pilot would take the observing party to the correct position.

Selection of the control points on the meridians and parallels of latitude within the specified limits can be made in two ways:

(i) Following the detail on the map or air photogra.:phso

(ii) If there are no local features to define the points, the time and bearing of the helicopter flight from a feature on the ·

(II.

20 .

map was recorded. On the return :flight another run was made to the same :feature or pre:ferably to a new one , as a check . See :figure 6 .

1115°30' I I

I. I

----- - - 1 ----- - 27°00' I I I

HOMESTEAD I

FIGURE 6. Re:ferring to :figure 7 and assuming that the reconnais ­

sance has been carri~d through to B , there would be observing parties at stations 1 , 2, 3 and 4 and lamp men on their own on A and B .

I. 3.

FIGURE 7.

The personnel would be :flown to the stations in the :following order :

1 , 2 , 3 , A , 4 , B .

This ensures that i:f :flying time runs out , at least the observers at 1 and 2 can work .

Where practicable , helicopter base camps should be situ­ated within 30 miles o:f the most dista nt station. When short distances are involved :for a complete series o:f stations - say :four observing parties and two lamp men spread over a distance o:f about 65 miles , it proved to be quite economica l to per:form all :flights :from one point . This enables the party to be kept together and the o:f:ficer in charge to retain direct control over the movement o:f vehicles . When the observing teams were spread over distances exceeding 65 miles , suitable helipads accessible to vehicles were selected as near to the stations as possible . These points were selected and ma rked during the helicopter reconnaissance . ..

Station NMF/629 is in the Capricorn Range, 23°29'$, I 17°03'E, and is on a high, flat topped hill covered with spinifex grass and scattered small trees. Helicopter shown landing with full load Helicopter: Bell 47 G-4.

(Photo by ]. Weller)

This is in the Nullagine area. Tracks are few. This country is practically inaccessible to motor vehicles.

(Photo by P.H. Langhorne)

Station NMF/610, at 26°54' S, 115°51' E, is in the Errabiddy Hills. The observing tent is set up over the main station mark. A ten feet wide lane had to be cut through scrub to distant station .

(Photo by J. Weller)

Mt. Palgrave, NMF/570, at 23° 22'5, 115° 59' E. A twelve feet diameter ring of rocks, whitewashed, surrounds the main station mark for ready identification on the ground and from the air.

(Photo by D.J. Hutton)

Vicinity Carawine, 21°29' S, 121°01'E Party transferring equipment from motor vehicle to helicopter for fl ight to station. Vehicle: International I 1/2 ton four wheel drive C 1300 truck. Helicopter: Bell 47 G-4.

(Photo by P.H. Langhorne)

Bee Hill M45,at 22°01 ' S, 120°52'E, was established and observed by the Department of Lands and Surveys, Western Australia, in 1958. It is a first order station. Two spur connections were made from this station to points near 120°30'E and 121°30' Eon 22°S parallel of latitude. Helicopter: Bell 47 G-4.

(Photo by P.H. Langhorne)

21 •

The surveyor in charge carried out the reconnaissance of the traverse route as far ahead as possible by helicopter from the first camp; then having a general idea of how far the survey was going to proceed over the next few days, the area for the next camp was selected and marked on the map. A vehicle was then sent forward to mark the ground access to the proposed camp, thus eliminating the possibility of any of the following vehicles getting lost. As two supply vehicles were usually with the party, one of these would accompany the first vehicle, thus providing the helicopter with fuel at each end of the section. Observers working behind the first camp or within reasonable distance in front would be flown back to this camp, and they would then drive around to the new camp, taking any extra vehicles with them. Observers working nearer the new camp would be flown to this camp. See figure 8.

5 ------/' I V ,,

II II II

0 CAMP N°·1 //

- -::: -::: ,,:;; =::; = ::: = =: = - -- By ROJl.o ~#

-::: -_:::,::,:::::- ---=.::::::::::;.::::-~-.. -s=.=s=: --:::::-~=,::::.=~--==-

FIGURE 8.

If the observers are spread out over a very long distance, which may happen when 30 to 40 mile lines are encountered, then in order to return the helicopter to the forward camp it is often necessary to leave fuel at previous camp sites.

Where long flights are encountered and the area is inac­cessible by vehicle, it is necessary for the helicopter to carry extra fuel. However, this cuts down on the available load and should be avoided.

The above gives a general outline of operational procedure adopted on ~ational Mapping helicopter traversing. The procedure used in the field depends on many factors and different areas require different techniques. The basic principles remain the same, but a flexible outlook should always be adopted.

+j

220

9. MANAGEJ1IBNT

The senior surveyor in the office undertook as much of the administration as possible o On the other hand, the field party leaders were given a free · hand to run their parties as seemed best,

depending on the weatherj the fitness of their staff , and the condition of their vehicles and eq_ui.pment.

Communj_cation was brief but freq_uent , generally by telegram over t he radio1 wi t h occas ional telephone conversations when a telephone was available o

The aim was to enable all administrative actions in the office to be completed two weeks before corresponding action in the field.

In the planning for helicopter traversing early in 1968,

advantage was taken of the fact that two experienced party leaders were availableo Their separate tasks were:

(i) Reconnaissance by heli copter , control and emplacement of observing part i es , control of supply parties (avgas in particular), con- · trol of helicopter and selection of forward helicopter base camps , checking field books , checking hou+s sheets of ,s t affo

(ii) Sending and receiving telegrams, finalizing helicopter hours sheets, compiling progress details and sending weekly reports!/ carrying forward field computations including check azimuths~ arranging return flights of obser­vi.ng parties from hi lls , moving helicopter camp forward, lamp showingo

t

The whole survey party, including the helicopter crew, was divided into 7 sub-parties, as shown below:

Sub-Party

Observing parties

Supply party

Hel .icopter party

Oper ations control party

Me.n

4 parties of 2 men

2 men

pilot , engineer and 1 man

2 party leaders and 1 observer

TABLE 2: ORGANISATION OF PARTY

Vehicles

4 International 1½ ton trucks

2 Bedford 3 ton trucks

1 International 1½ ton truck

2 International 1½ ton trucks

1 forward control Land-Rover.

I

The booker for the observer of the control party came from the supply party or from one of the observing parties.

Various people from the control or supply party showed lamps when required.

The two supply vehicles operated independently, one or the other being almost cont~nuously on trips to collect avgas, petrol for vahicles , food or water.

* Communication between the field party and the office was brief but frequent and was generally by telegram first transmitted by radio to a Royal Flying Doctor Base or to the Wo Ro Eo Communications Centre at Woomera, and then re-transmitted by these base stations through the normal telegraph channels to the office . Direct communication by telephone was occasionally available when the party reached more settled areas.

24 .

1 Oo SPOT PHOTOGRAPHY BY HELICOPTER

As previously mentioned in chapter 2, survey stations were specially marked to make them visible from the air for spot photographyo

Marking for spot photography d.eteriorates fairly rapidly, so it is wise to photograph marked stations as soon as possibleo

A helicopter is about five times as expensive as a fixed­wing· aircraft and its use for spot photo9raphy can only be justified in particular circumstanceso \See Table Jo) In addition, a helicopter needs a much bigger support party:

TABLE Jo

Aircraft

Helicopter Bell 47G-4

Fixed-wing aircraft Cherokee 6

o Party leader and photographer plus one vehicle . Driver plus one vehicle for engineer and the

helicopter equipment o Driver plus one 3-ton truck for avgas

COST OF SPOT PHOTOGRAPHY WITH HELICOPTER AND FIXED-WING AIRCRAF1

Charges Charter cost Average number Average per 6 hour of stations cost per

day per day station

About $80 $480 7 $68 per hour

About $37 $222 16 $14 pe r hour

These prices are based on medium-sized aircrafto

A fixed-wing aircraft only needs a support party when . operating in very remote areasj and then only a driver and vehicle to emplace fuel at landing stri pso

But the helicopter does have compensating advantages:

o The slow speed and excelle nt visibility make it easier to locate and photograph the station mark o

o If the station marking is indistinct it can be remedied immediately o

The helicopter is very sui table for training the photographer in this type of worko

Tn Western Australia in 1968 some spot photography was done by helicopter:

1. In conjunction with traversing operations; this was economical as only little additional heli­copter time was involved .

2. When the helicopter was taken from one main base camp to the next; in this instance only the additional helicopter time on the detours counted towards the cost of spot photography.

!

3. On full flying time, to clear up a cluster of stations north east of Meekatharra so that a fixed-wing aircraft would not have to visit the area.

26.

11. CONTRACTS FOR HELIC OPTER CHARTER

The contract document is in three sections:

1. Preamble on a printed form

2. Specifications

Jo Special Conditions.

It is the Special Conditions which are of interest to surveyors and readers of this Report. They contain detailed arrangements on the type of helicopter to be provided, co­operation of surveyor and crew, accommodation in the field, unserviceability of helicopter and all other matters relating to the usage of helicopters on mapping surveyso

Some of the more pertinent practical parts of the standard contract - as applied to the first helicopter charter in Western Australia in 1968 - are given below.

SCOPE OF REQUIREMENTS

The helicopter must be capable of lifting and trans­porting an effective payload of 565 lbs. exclusive of pilot and fuel for a distance of 120 miles without encroaching on the fuel reserves laid down by regulation.

The load of 565 lbs. may consist of equipment onl~ or of one or two passengers plus equipmento

NOTE:

(a) Commencement date:

(b) Commencement :12lace: ( C) ;Fl;zing hours not to exceed:

(d) AE:12roximate :12eriod of surve;z: ( e) Number of flying da;zs

:12er week:

(f) Areas to be f lown:

(g ) Com:12letion date:

(h) ComEletion Elace:

6 May 1968

Mount Vernon, W.A.

150

40 days

Normally five with expected maximum of six days . See Annex A.

About 14 June 1968

Carnarvon or Geraldton, WoAo

Annex A is part of a map showing the area of operation o

SPARE PARTS AND TOOLS

The contractor will ensure that sufficient spare parts and necessary tools are provided with the helicopter to cover normal maintenance.

The cont ractor shall provide two suitable pumps for re­fuelling the helicoptero One of these pumps shall be small, for occasional use on operational flightso

The contractor shall be responsible for the transport of spare parts from the nearest airport or landing strip on the principal airlines ' scheduled routes, to the helicoptervs overnight landing base, and shall if necessary arrange charter of light air­craft to the airstrip closest to the helicopter's overnight landing base, or if possible airdrop the parts to the helicopter crew, all at the contractor ' s cost .

FUEL AND OIL

The contractor shall estimate the total fuel and oil requirements for 150 hours of flying, and shall ensure that the total fuel and oil requirements shall be del ivered at his cost in quantities to be specified by the Division of National Mapping, to Onslow, Mount Vernon Homestead, Ashburton Downs Homestead and Carnarvono .

The Division of National Mapping shall be responsible for the positioning of such fuel and oil to all points at which it will be required during the survey from the above pointso

The Division of Nati onal Mappi ng shall not be held responsible for the return of empty fuel drums, but will assist as circumstances permito

CO- OPERATION

The contractor und ertakes, subject to the limitations of safety 9 that the pilot will co-operate in carrying out the orders and directions of the charterer o He will set down as required at such points as may be selected by the charterer. He will remain overnight .at a selected point if required and is required to navigate by the best available maps or air photos.

It will be the res pons i bili ty of the pilot and engineer to waken the ms elves in time to eat, service the helicopter and be ready to fly at whatever pre-arranged time the charterer O s representatives may require on the day available for flying.

RADIO COMMUNICATIONS

The contractor undertakes to fit the aircraft trans­ceiver with the National Mapping frequencies 3164 and 6815KHzo These frequencies will be used for communicati on between pilot and ground parties o A listening watch on the National Mappi ng frequencies will be maint ained by National Mapping staff at all times while the helicopter is airborne o

The contractor undertakes to keep a spare high frequency transceiver with specified crystals readily available in or near the survey area in case of radio break=downo

ACCOMMODATION AND MEALS

When the helicopter is operat i ng in localities where accommodation is not available on a commercial basis , the heli­copter crew and survey party will be required to camp together. The charterer will then provide tentage and camping equipment for the pilot and engineer o Such tentage and camping equipment shall be at the same standard as provided for the charterer ' s senior officers engaged on the work associated with the charter.

CONCLUSION

In remote areas which are difficult of access it is often more economi cal as well as convenient to employ helicopters for the transportation of survey teams and equipment to survey stations rather than try to reach such stations by motor vehicles.

The likelihood of serious breakdowns of motor vehicles in difficult and remote areas and the limi tations in seeing ahead to find the easiest access ro~te to survey stations yet to be reconnoitred should be considered when comparing costs of traditional methods of transportation with costs of airborne transportation by helicopter.

-

29~

12. ACKNOWLEDGE:MENTS

No field survey is brought to a successful conclusion without the assistance and co-operation ·of many peopleo The authors would like to acknowledge the part played by all the f i eld staff , often under trying conditi ons; in particular Mro Jo Fox , Technical Officer , who undertook the spot photo­graphy very efficientlyo They would also like to thank the helicopter pilots , Messrso No Osborne and Ao Silver for the helpful way they adapted themselves t o the primitive camping conditionso