Air Force PJ brings battlefield experience to 711 HPW research and development

  • Published
  • By John Schutte
  • 711th Human Performance Wing
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  For 19 years, Air Force Master Sergeant Robert Bean has dropped into the hottest combat zones around the world to rescue downed pilots, retrieve sensitive materials from aircraft crash sites, and evacuate pilots and wounded warfighters. 

During a recent deployment to Afghanistan, MSgt. Bean added a new mission--that of test subject expert for technology developed at the Air Force Research Laboratory's 711th Human Performance Wing, Human Effectiveness Directorate (711 HPW/RH).
 
MSgt. Bean is a Pararescue Jumper, or PJ, one of the elite corps of Airmen who are among the military's most highly trained emergency trauma and rescue specialists.
 
He and 711HPW/RH researchers are evaluating the battlefield communications, identification and geo-location technology developed for joint terminal attack controllers (JTACs) and tactical air control party airmen (TACPs)--who coordinate aircraft strikes against enemy targets--for possible application to the PJ rescue-and-recovery mission. 

The technology includes a SOCOM-X tactical communications headset, a modified assault vest with integrated cables, a wearable computer, low-profile cables with motion strain relief, and a FAST helmet with integrated side-rails for quickly mounting accessories such as video cameras and flashlights.
 
According to MSgt. Bean, fellow PJs immediately liked the equipment, especially the helmet camera they used during recovery of sensitive items from the wreckage of a downed helicopter. Their crash scene video became an important piece of the accident investigation.
 
The SOCOM-X communications system--developed by Spear Labs via a cooperative research and development agreement with 711 HPW/RH--muffled gunfire yet allowed PJs to clearly communicate with each other and hear important ambient sounds while retaining audio directional perspective.
 
MSgt. Bean sees potential PJ applications for the MR-1 wearable miniature computer. While TACPs and JTACS use it to send strike coordinates for close air support, MSgt. Bean says PJs could adapt the technology to send a patient's vital signs and other data to medical personnel in a helicopter or field hospital. 

The video camera and computer could also transmit live streaming video to a surgeon in critical situations, Bean said. 

"If a patient's condition presents a need for care beyond my realm of expertise, I could take a picture, send it back and have a surgeon advise me or actually walk me through a surgical procedure to save a life," Bean said. 

MSgt. Bean's combat duty also includes locations as diverse as Kosovo, Africa, Kuwait and Iraq. He served as director of training at the Pararescue School at Kirtland Air Force Base and is currently assigned to the Air Force Materials Command 669th AESS acquisition office at Wright-Patterson, where he served as subject matter expert (SME) on the Combat Search and Rescue helicopter program (CSAR-X).
 
When the CSAR-X stalled recently, MSgt. Bean was assigned as SME on the Battlefield Airman Operations (BAO) kit, and subsequently as SME on a new Guardian Angel Operations (GAO) kit being developed specifically for PJs. 

Through those assignments, Bean learned about the Battlefield Air Targeting Man-Aided Knowledge (BATMAN) program underway in the 711HPW/RH. BATMAN's goal is to reduce weight and improve efficiency of equipment that warfighters carry into combat.
Upon his deployment to Afghanistan in April 2009, Bean volunteered to take BATMAN gear with him to assess its performance and capabilities "downrange."
 
Like all PJs, MSgt. Bean is a qualified field trauma medic and emergency medical technician Paramedic (EMT-P), and he maintains combat efficiency with an M-4 carbine assault rifle. 

His experience embodies a wide range of geographies, austere conditions and life-threatening situations, and he's observed first-hand the evolution of combat medical, communications and identification technology over the past two decades.
 
Jack Blackhurst, 711 HPW/RH director, says that such breadth of experience is invaluable for researchers who want their newly developed technology tested in the real world.
 
"The value MSgt. Bean provides is direct feedback from the warfighter, which we can then incorporate into our programs to improve the technology and get that capability back to the warfighter faster," Mr. Blackhurst said. "So it's direct real-world feedback as opposed to just doing laboratory testing. It's invaluable. From a lab perspective, you can't do better than taking equipment out to the field for testing."