EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MQ-8B FIRE SCOUT TO PROVISION H.docx

EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MQ-8B FIRE
SCOUT TO PROVISION HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS POST
NATURAL DISASTERS
by
Henry Vascones
A Graduate Capstone Project Submitted to the College of
Aeronautics,
Department of Graduate Studies, in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Science in Aeronautics
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Worldwide Campus
March 2020
1

EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MQ-8B FIRE
SCOUT TO PROVISION HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS POST
NATURAL DISASTERS
by
Henry Vascones
This Graduate Capstone Project was prepared under the
direction of the candidate’s
Graduate Capstone Project Chair, Dr. Jeremy Hodges,
Worldwide Campus, and has been approved. It was submitted to
the
Department of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Graduate Capstone Project:
_________________________________________
Jeremy Hodges, PhD.
Graduate Capstone Project Chair
March 2020
II

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank those who assisted and guided me
throughout my time in the master’s program at Embry-Riddle
Aeronautical University Worldwide.
III
Abstract
Scholar: Henry Vascones
Title: Exploring the Effectiveness of the MQ-8B Fire Scout
to provision Humanitarian Efforts Post Natural Disasters
Institution: Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Degree: Master of Science in Aeronautics

Year: 2020
This study will explore the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
have been increasingly used for providing humanitarian aid
during natural disasters. This study will evaluate the
effectiveness of the Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout in
providing humanitarian aid after natural disasters have
occurred. The ability to utilize the MQ-8B will be analyzed by
determining their ability to conduct humanitarian in areas
affected by natural disasters and are largely inaccessible using
the existing traditional methods. The viability of using UAVs in
such operations in terms of abilities and costs will be compared
to using response utility trucks. The study will determine the
viability of using UAVs in responding to natural disasters while
at the same time providing economic benefits. The use of UAVs
will be compared to existing response approaches such as the
use of emergency response utility vehicles and manned flight.
The study will also develop a model to show the costs and
benefits of utilizing MQ-8B in responding to natural disasters.
A quantitative approach will be used to collect data from
existing literature. Information will be obtained from various
sources including the Insurance Information Institute, Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA), National Center for
Biotechnology Information (NCBI), Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (OSHA), and the Transportation
Research Board on UAVs and manned systems to help come up
with a solution to these problems
IV
Table of Contents
Page
Graduate Capstone Project
Committee…………………………….………………………………
………ii
Acknowledgements………………………………………….………
…………………………………….iii

Abstract………………………………………………………………
……………………………………iv
Chapter
I Introduction 1
Significance of the study 2
Statement of the Problem 2
Purpose Statement 3
Research Question and Hypothesis 3
Delimitations 4
Limitations and Assumptions 4
List of Acronyms 5
II Review of Relevant Literature 6
Origins of UAV and its Applications 6
Cargo Delivery with UAVs 7
Impacts of Weather 8
Operational Flexibility of UAVs 9
UAV legislation and regulation Environment
10
Human Factors 11
Sensing and Processing 12
Mobile Wireless Access Networks 13
Safety of UAVs 13
Summary 14
References 16

Chapter 1Introduction
Preparation and response to natural disasters presents a
significant logistical challenge. Considerable resources are used
by intergovernmental, governmental and non-governmental
organizations to prepare and respond to the effects of natural
disasters. When a natural disaster occurs, such organizations
mobilize their resources to respond. Recently, technological
advancements in autonomous, semiautonomous and unmanned
vehicles have increased their utility while reducing costs of use.
The increased use of UAVs has created a new dimension to
synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) operations. In real life, the use
of UAVs can be beneficial in cases where rapid decisions are
required or the use of manpower is limited (Boehm et al., 2017).
Natural disasters can cause significantly damage to
transportation infrastructure including railways and roads. In
addition, barrier lakes and landslides pose a serious threat to
property and life in areas affected. When infrastructure is
interfered with, heavy rescue equipment, rescue vehicles,
suppliers and rescue teams face challenges to reach disaster-hit
areas. As a result, efforts to provide humanitarian aid is
hampered (Tatsidou et al., 2019). The traditional approaches of
responding to natural disasters are unable to meet the
requirements to support the process of disaster decision making.
UAVs are well equipped to navigate areas affected by natural
disasters and provide humanitarian aid.
This study aims to explore the viability of using the MQ-
8B fire scout in providing humanitarian aid in areas affected by
natural disasters. The document will also provide a literature
review on the use of UAVs in providing humanitarian aids
whenever such events occur. The study will also compare the
viability of using MQ-8B to MH-60 in conducting rescue
operations in area affected by disasters. The study will mainly
focus on Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout which has an
impressive record in conducting such missions.

Significance of the Study
The significance of this study is to discover the
effectiveness of using UAVs in providing humanitarian aid in
areas affected by natural disasters. The study will help in
developing new knowledge and bridge the existing gap in
providing humanitarian aid using UAVs. The findings of this
study will increase knowledge on the effectiveness of UAVs in
responding to natural disasters and provide more insights on
useful ways to respond to affected areas. Ultimately, these
insights could help develop more knowledge about the fate of
UAVs associated with rescue operations. The findings of this
study can be used as the basis for future studies by researchers
interested in this topic.
Statement of the Problem
This study aims to address the loss of life during natural
disasters by evaluating how UAVs can be used to provide
humanitarian aid in such situations. There are many people who
have lost their lives due to a lack of effective approaches to
providing humanitarian aid. One of the most notable cases is the
earthquake that occurred in Haiti claiming more than 160,000
lives in 2010. Another notable case is the Indian Ocean tsunami
that occurred in 2004 and claimed the lives of more than
360,000 people and left about 1,300,000 others displaced
(Petrides et al., 2017). There were significant efforts to provide
humanitarian aid in both cases but the destruction of
infrastructure made it difficult to rescue people in the affected
areas.
Different governmental and non-governmental organizations
provided significant resources for the rescue and recovery
mission. However, the nature of railroads and roads has made it
impossible for response vehicles to reach the affected areas.
Supplies could only reach a few people who were far away from
the epicenter of the disaster. This shows the inefficiency
associated with traditional methods of providing humanitarian
aid in such situations. As a result, a more robust approach to
responding to natural disasters need to be developed to avoid

losing lives in the future. UAVs can be used to solve the
problem and help response teams provide humanitarian help to
affected areas in a cost-effective and timely manner.Purpose
Statement
The study aims to explore the effectiveness of using the
MQ-8B Fire Scout in providing humanitarian aid in disaster-hit
locations. The study will be written from the perspective that
the use of traditional methods to provide rescue operations has
been largely ineffective. The paper will also compare the
viability of using MQ-8B to MH-60 in such operations.
Research Question and Hypothesis
This study will to answer the following research questions
(RQ):
RQ1: Is the deployment of the MQ-8B Fire Scout more
expedient and cost-effective to delivering humanitarian aid
compared to using the MH-60 Sea Hawk?
RQ2: What are the advantages and disadvantages that could be
associated with the use of the MQ-8B Fire Scout for identifying
victims, water drops for wildfire hotspots, and first aid drops
for survivors post-natural disaster?
The following hypothesis (H) has been formulated for the study:
H0: There is no statistical difference in safety when using the
Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout when compared to the
MH-60 Sea Hawk to provision humanitarian aid in areas
affected by a disaster.
H1: There is a statistical difference in safety when using the
Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout when compared to the
MH-60 Sea Hawk to provision humanitarian aid in areas
affected by a disaster. Delimitations
This study will only focus on how UAV can be used in
rescue operations to provide humanitarian aid to individuals in
areas affected by natural disasters. As a result, the study will
not provide a description of how the UAVs can be used in
reconnaissance missions mostly conducted by military
personnel. The study will also not describe how UAVs can be
used to monitor riparian areas and pollution in marine areas.

Limitations and Assumptions
One of the major limitations of the research is that there
are significant costs associated with the use of UAVs and more
so with the MQ-8B fire scout. Various UAVs are needed to be
purchased to facilitate this study. However, due to their high
costs, the researchers settled to less efficient UAVs that could
not provide very accurate information. The physical demand of
the terrain, variation in weather conditions and less optimal use
of machine tools are some of the other factors that affected the
study. These factors have a significant impact on situational
awareness and affect how data is interpreted from UAVs. The
UAVs used in the study had shorter ranges and therefore could
not conduct a lot of information as expected. Another key
limitation of this study is observer bias that could have
compromised the results.List of Acronyms
FAA- Federal Aviation Administration
H- Hypothesis
RQ- research question
SAR-synthetic Aperture Radar
UAVs- Unmanned aerial vehicles
Chapter IIReview of the Relevant Literature
Providing humanitarian aid for people affected by natural
disasters has become an issue of major concern not only to
governments but also to other non-governmental organizations.
Destruction of existing infrastructure by natural disasters has

increased public interest in the development of effective tools to
provide humanitarian aid to disaster-hit areas. According to
(Macias, Angeloudis & Ochieng, 2018), unmanned aerial
vehicles are the logical choice for providing responding to
natural disasters. A review of relevant research will be
conducted in this chapter to determine the underlying
knowledge of the effectiveness of UAVs in providing
humanitarian aids. This review will also delineate factors that
may affect the optimum use of UAVs in areas affected by
natural disasters.
Origins of UAV and its Applications
The first UAV was developed in World War I under the
concept of cruise missiles to attack enemies from short
distances. The first UAV was a wooden biplane with a range of
75 miles. This technology was focused on attacking a specific
location with zero chance of return. However, by the 1850s the
United States Air Force was able to develop a UAV that was
able to return after attacking a particular point. During the
World War II, the American soldiers were able to use UAVs to
spy on their enemies. In the late 1960s, the United States Air
Force engineers embarked on developing UAVs with better
electric systems to observe activities of their enemies with
better precision (Tatsidou et al., 2019).
The significant technological developments since that time
have led to improved UAVs that can take part in more delicate
and complex missions. The use of advanced electronic
controlling systems, better radio systems, high-resolution
digital cameras, sophisticated computers, and advanced global
positing systems (GPS) allow AUVs to conduct recovery
missions effectively during natural disasters. The quality of
UAVs has significantly grown in the 2000s. UAVs are now used
not only used by the military by private firms and individual
owner operators. Their performance of modern UAVs allows
them to provide humanitarian aid in areas that have been
affected by disasters.Cargo Delivery with UAVs

Multiple studies show that UAVs are very effective in
delivering items to areas that have poor transportation
infrastructure. From delivering important supplies to monitoring
damage by the use of cameras, UAVs could play a significant
role in providing humanitarian aid. When compared to
traditional vehicles, UAVs are more sophisticated thanks to
their improved flexibility and ease of use. It is more effective
and safer to use a UAV to deliver suppliers in dangerous
locations that sending a human being. However, they are unable
to carry an excessively heavy load as a result of their size and
mostly drop cargo on their way (D'Amato, Notaro & Mattei,
2018).
UAV designers choose to have them release cargo on air or
land for a receiver to remove the cargo. However, for delivering
humanitarian aid in disaster-hit areas, UAVs are designed to
drop suppliers from the air. Based on the limited lifting
capacity of UAVs, items must be parked in small containers
(Petrides et al., 2017). Cargo for humanitarian UAVs normally
consists of blood, bandages, syringes, water purifying tablets,
and/medicine. Defibrillation attachments may also be included
in the deliverables. These items are light in nature and can be
packaged into small containers to be lifted by the UAVs. This
allows the UAV to travel for long distances without losing its
efficiency.
Impacts of Weather
The impact of weather on UAVs depends on the power,
equipment, configuration, and size of the UAV as well as the
exposure time and the severity of the weather being
encountered. Most UAVs have characteristics and
configurations which make them more vulnerable to extreme
weather conditions compared to manned aircraft. In general,
today's UAVs are more fragile, lighter and slower as well as
more sensitive to weather conditions when compared to manned
aircraft. Small UAVs are very susceptible to extreme weather

conditions. Similar to manned aircraft, larger UAVs can also be
affected by certain weather conditions that can make them
difficult to control them.
Extreme weather conditions such as snow, humidity,
temperature extremes, solar storms, rain, turbulence, and wind
may diminish the aerodynamic performance of UAVs, cause loss
of communication and control as well as negatively affect the
operator. Most flight regulations that are being used at the
moment do not address most of the weather hazards facing
UAVs. Some of the current restrictions pertaining to weather
include remaining 2000 feet away from ceiling and 500 feet
below clouds, operating under the unaided visual line and
maintaining visibility for 4.83km (Macias, Angeloudis &
Ochieng, 2018). While this eliminates issues of poor visibility,
it does not help to reduce safety hazards associated with clear
skies. These hazards may include turbulence, glare, and wind.
Glare occurs in clear skies but may affect visibility in various
ways. First, it hinders the direct observation of the UAV. On a
sunny day, it may also be difficult to spot a UAV in the skies.
As a result, operators must use sunglasses on a sunny day to be
able to carry their missions effectively. Second, the operation of
UAVs requires a user interface to be displayed on a tablet,
phone, monitor or any other screen to allow the operator to
track the UAV, change control derivatives or send commands
while receiving telemetry updates. The LCD brightness can be
overpowered by the reflection of the sun on these screens
making it difficult for the operator to send the correct
information to control the UAV.
Turbulence can also affect the stability of UAVs. Multiple
studies show that wind accounted for more than 50% of manned
aircrafts accidents. This percentage is also higher for small
aircraft. This shows the impacts that turbulence may have on
small unmanned vehicles. The primary ways wind affects UAVs
includes reducing endurance, limiting control, and changing
flight trajectory. Strong wind affects the path of a UAV. Wind
speeds may also surpass the maximum speed of UAVs making

them struggle in such environments. The impact of turbulence
could make it difficult for the UAVs to deliver humanitarian aid
to affected areas in a timely manner.
Turbulence, wind gusts, and wind shear all have the
potential of affecting Control of UAV. UAV control is the
ability to maneuver the UAV by use of roll, pitch, and yaw.
Pitch changes the attack angle for the UAV, roll rotates the
UAV, and yaw changes the direction of the UAV. This affects
how the operator controls the UAV. When the speed of the wind
increases suddenly, the yaw of the UAV is affected making it
difficult for the operator to control it effectively. A horizontal
gust can also roll the UAV and is most dangerous especially
when it if flying in areas with obstructions.
Operational Flexibility of UAVs
UAVs have increased persistence in air operations compared to
manned systems making them ideal for conducting humanitarian
aid operations. While there are theoretical and practical limits,
utilizing few vehicles allows for continuous surveillance for a
long period of time. Their flexibility allows them to carry out
operations when and where other manned aircraft are unable to
operate. The long-endurance capabilities of these vehicles allow
them to deliver humanitarian aid many hours into a flight which
could otherwise be impossible with the traditional
approaches. As a result, people in areas experiencing natural
disasters may receive supplies continuously.
While both unmanned and manned air operations can be
coordinated by multiple people, not having a physical operator
in the vehicle allows multiple operators to share direct controls.
The user with the most immediate need or situational awareness
may assume the full control of the UAV. This capability
significantly reduces the timelines of coordination between the
UAV and ground users. The dire need associated with response
missions, UAVs are better suited to provide humanitarian aid
when compared to the traditional methods which normally takes
a significant amount of time to reach those affected.UAV

legislation and regulation Environment
The ability to use UAVs for disaster response in the United
States is largely limited by the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA). The current FAA policy for operating unmanned aerial
vehicles in the United States requires specific authority to
operate one. In general, any use of UAV requires airworthiness
certification. However, potential users of UAVs face significant
regulatory challenges in the United States. The law requires
UAVs to include registration numbers in their markings.
Operation circular 91-57 describes the differences between non-
hobby use and hobby use of UAVs and operating restrictions.
The FAA has implemented various orders to restrict the
operation of UAVs.
Local governments have developed legislation that
describes the potential use of UAVs in emergency situations.
Also, various municipalities including Syracuse, New York, and
Charlottesville, Virginia have implemented further restrictions
like city purchases of UAVs. Serious concerns about data
collection and privacy have erupted in the United States. The
FAA developed a restriction for privacy in areas of UAVs
operations. It is clear that until the private use, regulation and
legislation issues surrounding the adoption of UAVs are not
resolved it will be difficult to use them in first response
situations. While these challenges exist, researchers need to
explore ways in which UAVs can be used to provide
humanitarian aid during natural disasters. Human Factors
In most cases, designers develop controls that work very
well in labs but fail in a real-world situation. The expectation is
through training and familiarization humans will be able to
learn and adapt to the controls and displays. However, this
approach is deemed to fail if used in the development of a
human-machine interface. As the capabilities of UAVs increases
each and every day, their complexity has also increased. The
need to use automation and advanced technology also increases.
While these systems are unmanned, it is important to keep in
mind that humans are involved in the control and operation of

UAVs (Hildmann & Kovacs, 2019).
The lack of standardization across different UAV human-
machine interfaces results in an increased time of training for
one system and increased difficulty in transition to other
systems. Poor optimization of information results in the
difficulty of interpreting system information needed for
situational awareness and support decision making in stressful
situations. Lack of adaptability and flexibility in UAVs often
lead to poor displays and ultimately to poor situational
awareness. Lack of basic sensory cues makes it even more
difficult to use UAVs in response missions. The cues which are
relevant in manned aircraft suddenly become irrelevant in UAVs
(Estrada & Ndoma, 2019). These cues are currently missing in
UAVs and need to be incorporated for increased efficiency.
The development of UAVs that consider the end-user could
increase their effectiveness in responding to natural disasters.
This implies designing human-machine interfaces that are
intuitive, functional and user-friendly to allow operators to
easily extract relevant information when needed. With the
current technological advancements, it is possible to come up
with intuitive and functional interfaces that utilize the available
cues to maintain high levels of situational awareness needed for
effective efficient and safe control of UAVs. This will allow
operators to understand various aspects of UAVs and be able to
deploy them in dangerous areas such as locations affected by
natural disasters.
Sensing and Processing
The success of providing humanitarian aid to areas
affected by natural disasters depends on the equipment having
with the appropriate sensors, at the right place and at the right
time. This is important particularly in response situations where
emergency signals, remoteness, weather, and terrain differ
significantly. Even if the UAV is at the right place at the right
time, it will be rendered ineffective without the right sensors.
The initial phase of a rescue mission is very critical and
requires UAVs to have appropriate sensors. Various sensors

may be used in a single UAV to allow it to come up with a
general picture of the situation (Grogan, Pellerin & Gamache,
2018).
Since the strength of signals are inversely proportional to the
square of the distance, unmanned aerial vehicles designed to
provide humanitarian aid in areas experiencing natural disasters
need to have stronger signals than ground station receivers and
satellites. The signal can be triangulated by multiple UAVs if
sent in a digital format. In cases where ELTs are not
transmitting or activated, infrared sensors can be used to search
the location of the UAV. Fortunately, sensors in the infrared
and low light wavelength have significantly decreased physical
dimensions and costs. Onboard automation will be very
important for effective UAV operations in extreme conditions.
Mobile Wireless Access Networks
Compared to traditional static sensors, UAVs are still more
costly. Considering that the infrastructure needed to respond to
such cases is currently being met by the existing infrastructure,
it is justified that most studies focus on the immediate aftermath
of a natural disaster. UAVs can be used to develop a
communication center to provide victims in an affected area
with wireless communication. UAVs can allow people trapped
in areas affected by natural calamities to communicate with the
emergency control center for rescue (Grogan, Pellerin &
Gamache, 2018). One of the benefits of such a system is that it
serves those only in the affected location and this can maximize
performance. Safety of UAVs
The use of UAVs in rescue operations depends on their
ability to safely operate in the shared aviation environment. As
a result, UAVs must demonstrate that they can ensure safety
both for people on the ground and other aircraft. However, there
are various safety risks associated with UAVs which are
different from those presented by manned vehicles. UAVs do
not have occupants and therefore the risk of pilots losing their
lives in flight is eliminated. The use of manned vehicles, on the
other hand, implies that people will need to use vehicles to get

to areas that have been affected by natural disasters. As a result,
the livers of the rescue teams are at risk (Estrada & Ndoma,
2019).
UAV designers are aware of the safety concerns associated
with their systems more so concerning the poor reliability of
such systems in extreme conditions. They understand political
support and public trust would fade way in case of an accident.
For this reason, safety remains a top priority for the UAV
community. UAVs have the potential to provide considerable
safety benefits in disaster response operations. Significant
technological developments have the potential to improve safety
associated with UAVs. Advances in monitoring systems, data
exchange networks, communication, sensor detection systems
and automation will have positive impacts on UAVs. Automated
takeoff eliminates the possibility of accidents for operators
(Escribano Macias, Angeloudis & Ochieng, 2018).
UAVs use the same airspace used by other aircraft. As a
result, there are high chances of collision in the airspace.
Numerous studies by research institutions, universities,
industry, and governments across the world have focused on
how collision can be avoided in the airspace. While avoiding
collisions is a difficult task, the UAV community has developed
to see and avoid capabilities that allows them to avoid
obstructions. The distance of detecting obstructions has been
clearly provided by the FAA regulations. The FAA calls for
operators to maintain vigilance to detect and avoid collisions
with obstructions while flying UAVs.
Summary
Most of the studies explore the effectiveness of using
UAVs in conducting reconnaissance missions. However, there is
a gap in research focused on the effectiveness of using UAVs to
provide humanitarian aid during and after natural disasters.
Also, there is limited research in comparing the effectiveness of
using UAVs to conducts rescue and recovery missions as
compared to the use of manned vehicles. There is also limited
research focused on determining the costs and benefits of

utilizing emergency response vehicles and UAVs in responding
to natural disasters
This study will determine the resourcefulness of using
UAVs in responding to natural disasters while at the same time
providing economic benefits. The study will help in developing
new knowledge and bridge the existing gap in providing
humanitarian aid using UAVs. The findings of this study will
increase knowledge on the effectiveness of UAVs in responding
to natural disasters and provide more insights on ways that can
be used to respond to affected areas. Ultimately, these insights
could help develop more knowledge about the fate associated
with rescue operations. The findings of this study can be used
as the basis for future studies by researchers interested in this
topic.
References
Boehm, D., Chen, A., Chung, N., Malik, R., Model, B., &
Kantesaria, P. (2017). Designing an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
(UAV) for Humanitarian Aid. Retrieved from
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/7c1c/5bf85cd386d2157a44fbbf
2aa9532499c6f3.pdf
D'Amato, E., Notaro, I., & Mattei, M. (2018, June). Distributed
collision avoidance for unmanned aerial vehicles integration in
the civil airspace. In 2018 International Conference on
Unmanned Aircraft Systems (ICUAS) (pp. 94-102). IEEE.

Retrieved from …
Running head: EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE
MQ-8B FIRE SCOUT 1
EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF UNMANNED
AERIEL VEHICLES 16
Exploring the Effectiveness of the MQ-8B Fire Scout to
provision Humanitarian Efforts Post Natural Disasters
Henry Vascones
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
ASCI 691 Graduate Capstone Project Proposal
Submitted to the Worldwide Campus
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of
February 2020
Abstract
In this study, the effectiveness of the use of Unmanned Aerial
Vehicles (UAV) in the provision of humanitarian aid during
natural disasters will be evaluated. The viability of using UAVs
will be studied by looking at the ability to access areas affected
by natural disasters unreachable by traditional means as well as
the costs incurred in the endeavor. The viability will be
evaluated by comparing the abilities and costs of using UAVs
and disaster response utility trucks that are typically used in
disaster management. The research will attempt to determine if

UAVs can provide humanitarian aid in areas affected by natural
disasters while simultaneously realizing an economic benefit.
UAVs will be compared to traditional delivery methods such as
manned flight and emergency response utility vehicles. A model
depicting the advantages and costs of using UAVs and
emergency response vehicles in humanitarian aid delivery will
be developed. The study will use quantitative data collected
from existing literature from the Insurance Information
Institute, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), National
Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the
Transportation Research Board on UAVs and manned systems
as a means of obtaining a solution to the research problem
above.
Keywords: UAVs, natural disasters, earthquakes
Proposal
The research presented in this proposal will be an analysis use
of Unmanned Aerial MQ-8B Fire Scout for delivery of
humanitarian aid during natural disasters. The graduate
capstone proposal (GCP) will cover applicable concepts in the
Aeronautical Science field as well as concepts for Aviation
Aerospace Safety Systems and Unmanned Aerospace Systems
specializations.
Objective
The problem to be addressed in this study is loss of human life
during natural disasters which could possibly be prevented or
reduced through enhance delivery of humanitarian aid.
According to Luo et al. (2017), the earthquake that hit Haiti in
2010 claimed about 160,000 lives. The 2004 Indian Ocean
tsunami left about 360,000 people dead and more than
1,300,000 others displaced (Luo et al., 2017). While there were
efforts taken to deliver humanitarian aid in both instances, the

use of manned systems proved to be limited to areas that
presented less risk to the rescue teams and was marred with
breakdowns. This study will compare mishap rates for the MQ-
8B Fire Scout and the human operated MH-60 Sea Hawk in such
instances. As such, the analysis will evaluate which between
manned aircraft and UAVs are the most effective in timely
provision of humanitarian aid during natural disasters as a
means of preventing loss of human lives.
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles were initially designed and used for
specific military missions. Their use has expanded. It is now
used in such fields as: surveillance, research, agriculture, and
more. The use of UAVs has been instrumental in enabling
access to areas too dangerous to deploy human beings
(Valavanis & Vachtsevanos, 2015).
UAVs have been involved in search and rescue missions during
disasters (Polka et al., 2017). The primary reason UAVs are
preferred for search and rescue missions is the life of the pilot
is not put at risk while the mission is conducted. The invention
of UAV technology has demonstrated positive results in both
the military and civilian sectors, and has bridged an existing
gap that could not be filled by pre-existing technology (Kimchi
et al., 2017). In cases of natural disasters such as floods, mud
slides, and avalanches, search and rescue teams face continual
challenges accessing the unstable areas to deliver the much-
needed assistance and aid. It has been shown to be most
difficult accessing affected people in the rural and mountainous
areas not easily accessible by land-based vehicles. The research
aims at analyzing how to reduce the risk of manned air crew and
effectively provide humanitarian aid during natural disasters
with UAVs.
Scope
This study will evaluate the effectiveness of using the MQ-8B
Fire Scout in the provisioning of humanitarian aid in areas that
have been hit by disasters. The research will be in reference to
the rates of mishaps of the MQ-8B compared to the MH-60.
When disasters strike, deployment of human rescuers may be

curtailed by hazards that are associated with the disasters.
(Gomez & Purdie, 2017). The hazards caused by disasters
necessitate the use of UAVs. Apart from providing humanitarian
aid in a timelier manner compared to other means, UAVs ensure
rescuers are not exposed to the hazards associated with rescue
work. The main focus of this research will be the Northrop
Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout which has a track record of
successful military missions (Grumman, 2015). The research
will look at how the Fire Scout can be used mutually for
military operations as well its capacity for provisioning
humanitarian aid. Given their available speed and ability to
access high risk places, MQ-8B Fire Scout can offer a solution
to the existing problem (Gomez & Purdie, 2017).
This research is aimed at answering the following research
questions: How viable is the deployment of the MQ-8B Fire
Scout for a more expedient and cost-effective solution to
delivering humanitarian aid? The research will analyze the
advantages and disadvantages that could be associated with the
use of the MQ-8B Fire Scout for identifying victims, water
drops for wildfire hotspots, and first aid drops for survivors
post natural disaster. If the advantages outweigh the
disadvantages, then it would be considered effective and vice
versa. The research can be seen as an analysis of the
effectiveness of the MQ-8B Fire Scout as an additional method
to delivering humanitarian aid (Gomez & Purdie, 2017).
The hypothesis below is to be tested using the t-test hypothesis
testing method to evaluate the effectiveness of the MQ-8B Fire
Scout in areas affected by disasters. The effectiveness will be
measured in terms of the UAVs delays as caused by accident
rates during provision of services in disaster-stricken areas
(Malandrino et al., 2019).
H0: There is no statistical difference in safety when using the
Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout when compared to
manned vehicles to provision humanitarian aid in areas affected
by a disaster.
H1: There is a statistical difference in safety when using the

Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout when compared to
manned vehicles to provision humanitarian aid in areas affected
by a disaster.
Methodology
In the proposed study, quantitative research methods will be
used to analyze existing data on the usability of UAVs in
disaster-stricken areas. A mathematical model will be developed
to replicate mishaps which may occur during the logistics
process in humanitarian aid. This method will provide
objective, data-based evidence regarding the prospects of
employing UAVs in disaster-stricken areas. (Gomez & Purdie,
2017). A qualitative study would be insufficient to satisfy the
hypothesis given its subjectivity and inability to sufficiently
answer the research questions outlined above.
Developing the Model
Data provided by a model created by Choudhury et al. (2017)
will be used in this study. The model replicates the mishap rates
to evaluate the effectiveness of the use of the MQ-8B compared
to the MH-60 in disaster-stricken areas, several guidelines will
be followed. The logistics network is expressed in the form of
smooth continuous functions. The logistics network is
represented in a two-dimensional space with demand points
represented by discrete points within the service area in the
two-dimensional space (Gomez & Purdie, 2017). The demand
for humanitarian aid in the demand points will be modelled as
Poisson processes. Using the model created by Gomez and
Purdie, different scenarios will be simulated to obtain the said
data.
The model will incorporate the rates of mishaps for both the
MQ-8B and the MH-60 in different types of disasters and
landscapes. More specifically, the two modes of delivery will be
compared in terms of mishap rates in mountainous landscapes,
shrub lands, coasts and wetlands. The rates are encountered in
such disasters as hurricanes, tsunamis, fires and earthquakes
will also be integrated in the model to ensure it depicts the real-
world mishaps rates.

Such factors as speed and ability to access the disaster-stricken
areas will be incorporated into the model. UAVs are faster and
have the ability to be deployed in areas that may be inaccessible
to disaster response utility trucks. As such, these factors will be
given weights, with UAVs expected to have higher scores in the
weights compared to disaster response utility trucks (Gomez &
Purdie, 2017).
The model, therefore, will be used to compare the rates of
mishaps in a simulated scenario. The viability of the use of
UAVs in provision will be evaluated by using this method. The
rates of mishaps for MQ-8B Fire Scout will be compared with
those of the MH-60. A t-test will be carried out on the
independent means of mishap rates for both aircraft systems. If
the P-value that will be obtained during the hypothesis will be
less than the chosen alpha value, the null hypothesis (H0) will
be rejected. If the P-value is greater than the chosen alpha
value, then the null hypothesis will be upheld.
To ensure the model is consistent with real-world scenarios, the
costs of providing humanitarian aid will be tested using a real-
world scenario where an area has a high prevalence of disasters
will be chosen. In this study, data collected from the
Mississippi of Hancock, Jackson, and Harrison which were
struck by a hurricane for two days in 2005 will be used (Gomez
& Purdie, 2017). The assumptions stated above will be
maintained and the results will be compared against those of
getting from the simulation and the consistency levels will be
recorded.
A major limitation of this study is the fact the costs of using
UAVs are drawn from the use of the Northrop Grumman MQ-8B
Fire Scout UAV. However, different UAV models have different
costs which make this research to lose generalizability.
However, the model in the proposed research will mitigate this
limitation by allowing flexibility in the parameters so that costs
for different models can be inculcated and the effectiveness
estimated (Wang et al., 2019).
The proposed study will follow the ethical guidelines regarding

the use of data from MQ-8B Fire Scout manufacturer to the
letter. If there is information whose authority to publish is not
provided, the proposed research will not use it as such. The
information that will be used for manned systems will as well
be retrieved from trusted databases.
Summary
The proposed study's quantitative analysis of data will enable
the development of a model to estimate the effectiveness of
using UAVs in the provisioning of humanitarian aid in disaster-
stricken areas. The model will be instrumental in determining if
the Fire Scout is suitable to conduct humanitarian aid mission’s
comparative to manned systems. Such factors as the speed of
deployment as well as the ability of the selected mode of
deployment aid will be effectively incorporated into the model.
Statement of How Capstone Outcomes Will Be Met
1. Demonstrate problem-solving skills using scientific research
methods.
Problem-solving skills using scientific research methods will be
demonstrated by the application of the basic scientific approach
to solving problems. This problem-solving approach occurs in
five different stages (Çaparlar, & Dönmez, 2016) The first stage
involves identifying and analyzing a problem. The proposed
research identifies the problem of supplying humanitarian aid in
areas affected by such natural disasters as floods and fires
among others. The problem is deeply analyzed and it is realized
conventional methods of deploying aid in such areas may be
rendered ineffective. It is ineffective because most transport
systems in these areas are ground-based and become affected by
the disasters making it almost impossible to access them. Where
accessible, the risks to human life that are associated with the
disasters make it even more difficult to deploy manned vehicles
or planes to these areas. This risk requires coming up with a
solution to this problem scientifically (Çaparlar, & Dönmez,
2016).
The second step is the formation of a hypothesis. The proposed
study details a hypothesis that UAVs could be used to solve the

problem of inaccessibility in areas stricken by disasters. The
research will be built around this hypothesis. It will attempt to
evaluate if the proposed solution can indeed be used to solve the
identified problem (Çaparlar, & Dönmez, 2016).
The last step in problem-solving is reporting the results of the
research (Çaparlar, & Dönmez, 2016). In the proposed study,
the findings of the study will be inculcated in the research
report. Once the above steps are effectively completed,
problem-solving skills using scientific research methods are
shown will be demonstrated.
2. Demonstrate Graduate Level Writing Ability in APA Format.
Graduate-level writing ability in APA format will be
demonstrated by proper writing mechanics and formatting. The
research report will be tailored in such a manner the used text
consists of fluid information, free from grammatical and
spelling mistakes. The paper will be formatted according to the
current APA format. Citations will be provided for ideas that
are sourced from other people’s publications and references will
be provided at the end of the report. The citations and
references will be formatted according to the APA format.
3. Demonstrate Professional Communication and Oral
Presentation Skills.
A professional tone will be used throughout the report to
demonstrate professional communication skills (Çaparlar, &
Dönmez, 2016). At no point will first-person pronouns be used
in the research. Neither will be possessive language be used to
describe anything in the research. The research will represent as
a professional piece of work expected at the graduate level.
4. Demonstrate Ability to Evaluate Current Industry Issues
Using Critical Thinking skills.
The proposed study will address disaster management within the
realms of aviation aerospace. Disaster management is an area
currently being considered to shape disaster management more
efficiently and practically. Governments and humanitarian aid
organizations are constantly looking at UAVs as the best
approach to be used for addressing the problems brought about

by disasters.
The research will also demonstrate critical thinking skills by
detailing a solution to the problems brought about by disasters
and by the adoption of advanced technology (Çaparlar, &
Dönmez, 2016). The objective of the proposed research is to
come up with a solution to the elevated number of deaths
associated natural disasters. The research will integrate critical
thinking skills as a means of getting a solution to the proposed
problem.
5. Demonstrate of Use Technology Appropriate to Industry
Requirements.
The proposed study will be dealing with a wide margin of UAV
operations. More specifically, the study will be focusing on
Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout. The estimated costs of
using UAVs in disaster management will be based on a real-life
application of the MQ-8B Fire Scout. The battery and fuel
requirements for the UAV will be used to calculate the costs of
operation. At every stage of UAV flight, the costs will be used
in the overall estimation process are the ones provided by its
manufacturer (Çaparlar, & Dönmez, 2016). By using the
manufacturer data, the technology being used to solve the
identified problem will be tailored to reflect the industry
requirements of a typical Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire
Scout.
6. Apply an Ethical and Professional Framework in Decision
Making.
Professional framework in decision making will be
demonstrated by following a universally accepted decision-
making process. The professional framework follows five steps
whose successful completion indicates the decision has been
made professionally (Çaparlar, & Dönmez, 2016). The first step
involves defining the problem. As such, the proposed research
will effectively define the problem at hand which is evaluating
the viability of the use of UAVs in the provisioning of
humanitarian aid.
The second step in demonstrating a professional decision-

making framework is gathering information regarding the
problem. The proposed research will undertake a literature
review on the topic of the use of UAVs in the provisioning of
humanitarian aid. The review will provide the required
information to guide the researcher as they undertake the
research. The information collected in the literature review will
be objectively analyzed as a means of drawing different insights
from the same facts that have been collected. Once information
is analyzed, different options for solving the problem at hand
will be developed. As such, this research will present both the
use of response vehicles and UAVs as solutions to the problems
brought about by disasters.
The delays caused by mishaps in both options will be compared,
and the better option will be chosen using the developed model.
Lastly, professional decision-making frameworks demand that
the results that are obtained from a decision-making process are
tested to ensure that indeed the solution is the best out of the
developed options (Çaparlar, & Dönmez, 2016). In this study,
the model that will be evaluated will be tested in a real-world
situation to ensure that the results of the model simulation are
consistent with the results of the hypothesis testing process.
Ethical frameworks will be adhered to by reporting data for
which authority to use has been issued. Any information that
will be used regarding the MQ-8B Fire Scout from Northrop
Grumman will be obtained from their databases by requesting
the authority to use them where necessary (Çaparlar, &
Dönmez, 2016). As well, data and ideas that will be obtained
from other people’s work will be designated as such.
Specialization Outcomes
The proposed study will ensure that the capstone specialization
outcomes will be met in the following specializations.
Aviation Aerospace Safety Systems
The proposed study will provide ways in which different perils
exist in the use of UAVs. While there are fewer risks to human
life when using UAVs, the use of UAVs in congested aerospace
is risky (Valavanis & Vachtsevanos, 2015). As well, high-

density air is also a risk factor in the safety of UAVs. As such,
the proposed study will delve into information regarding their
use in the provisioning of humanitarian aid in areas where the
disasters themselves create risks in the usage of UAVs.
Unmanned Aerospace Systems
The proposed research is based on the application of unmanned
aerospace vehicles. More specifically, it aims at evaluating how
effective it would be to deploy UAVs to provide humanitarian
aid in areas that have been hit by disasters. The research will
evaluate how UAVs have been used in the past for military
purposes. However, their use has now been extended to such
fields as, surveillance, research, and agriculture among many
more. The research will also describe how UAVs can be
instrumental in enhancing access to areas that are too dangerous
to deploy human beings (Valavanis & Vachtsevanos, 2015).
References
Bruzzone, A., Longo, F., Massei, M., Nicoletti, L., Agresta, M.,
Di Matteo, R. & Padovano, A. (2016, June). Disasters and
emergency management in chemical and industrial plants:
drones simulation for education and training. In International
Workshop on Modelling and Simulation for Autonomous
Systems (pp. 301-308). Springer, Cham. Retrieved from
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-47605-
6_25
Çaparlar, C. Ö., & Dönmez, A. (2016). What is scientific
research and how can it be done? Turkish journal of
anesthesiology and reanimation, 44(4), 212. Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5019873/
Chowdhury, S., Emelogu, A., Marufuzzaman, M., Nurre, S. G.,
& Bian, L. (2017). Drones for disaster response and relief
operations: A continuous approximation model. International
Journal of Production Economics, 188, 167-184. Retrieved from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925527317
301172
Dodge, J. (2015). MQ-8 Fire Scout Unmanned Aircraft System

(MQ-8 Fire Scout). US Navy Patuxent River United States.
Retrieved from https://apps.dtic.mil/docs/citations/AD1019503
Gomez, C., & Purdie, H. (2016). UAV-based photogrammetry
and geocomputing for hazards and disaster risk monitoring–a
review. Geoenvironmental Disasters, 3(1), 23. Retrieved from
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40677-016-0060-y
Grumman, N. (2015). MQ-8B Fire Scout: Unmanned Air
System. Retrieved from
https://www.northropgrumman.com/air/fire-scout/
Kimchi, G., Buchmueller, D., Green, S. A., Beckman, B. C.,
Isaacs, S., Navot, A., ... & Rault, S. S. J. M. (2017). U.S. Patent
No. 9,573,684. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark
Office. Retrieved from
https://patents.google.com/patent/US9573684B2/en
Luo, C., Miao, W., Ullah, H., McClean, S., Parr, G., & Min, G.
(2019). Unmanned aerial vehicles for disaster management.
In Geological Disaster Monitoring Based on Sensor
Networks (pp. 83-107). Springer, Singapore. Retrieved from
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-13-0992-2_7
Malandrino, F., Rottondi, C., Chiasserini, C. F., Bianco, A., &
Stavrakakis, I. (2019, July). Multiservice UAVs for Emergency
Tasks in Post-disaster Scenarios. In Proceedings of the ACM
MobiHoc workshop on innovative aerial communication
solutions for FIrst REsponders network in emergency
scenarios (pp. 18-23). Retrieved from
https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3331053.3335032
Półka, M., Ptak, S., & Kuziora, Ł. (2017). The use of UAV's for
search and rescue operations. Procedia engineering, 192, 748-
752. Retrieved from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877705817
326759
Valavanis, K. P., & Vachtsevanos, G. J. (Eds.).
(2015). Handbook of unmanned aerial vehicles (Vol. 1).
Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands. Retrieved from
https://link.springer.com/978-90-481-9707-1
Wang, Y., Lei, T., Yang, H., Zhang, J., Wang, J., Zhao, C., &

Li, X. (2019, August). The application of UAV remote sensing
in natural disasters emergency monitoring and assessment.
In Eleventh International Conference on Digital Image
Processing (ICDIP 2019) (Vol. 11179, p. 1117919).
International Society for Optics and Photonics. Retrieved from
https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-
spie/11179/1117919/The-application-of-UAV-remote-sensing-
in-natural-disasters-
emergency/10.1117/12.2539775.full?webSyncID=9a0ce46e-
9e6e-c7a4-9dab-6a0cbad05932&sessionGUID=9ad883c9-d902-
bc99-93ce-d268bead49a2
Dear Student
This paper is backsliding, where you have changed aspects of
the paper that do not follow guidance and feedback I gave you
that led to your proposal being approved.
You cannot change the problem, purpose, intent, research
question, hypothesis, and data collection/analysis plan now that
the proposal is approved.
In your proposal in the objective section, you mentioned “This
study will compare mishap rates for the MQ-8B Fire Scout and
the human operated MH-60 Sea Hawk in such instances. As

such, the analysis will evaluate which between manned aircraft
and UAVs are the most effective in timely provision of
humanitarian aid during natural disasters as a means of
preventing loss of human lives.” You need to focus on this
issue.
Also, in the Scope section you mentioned “The research will be
in reference to the rates of mishaps of the MQ-8B compared to
the MH-60” that’s good topic, continue on that subject as well.
Make the changes required in your Chapter 1 so it reflects the
approved elements from your proposal. There are typos and
grammar errors throughout. Proofread and correct. Paragraphs
should be 3-7 sentences. You took out the explicit problem
statement.!!
You have changed one research question into a "yes/no"
question.
Your literature review is ok, but will need expansion to ensure
you have covered all of the program outcome areas and your
specialization(s). You need to cover Aviation Aerospace Safety
systems & Unmanned Aerospace Systems into your literature
review paper.
Make sure to develop your lit review to include those elements
from your program outcomes that you may have missed.
In week 4's submission, you need to demonstrate exactly your
data collection, analysis, statistical test, and conclusion on your
hypothesis.
Make the changes for Chapters 1 and 2 of your paper and
resubmit, then move on to Module 4. You are falling behind on
your project. You really need to concentrate on your project if
you want to succeed in this course.!!

EXPLORING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MQ-8B FIRE SCOUT TO PROVISION H.docx

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