Ship-Helicopter Operating Limits Prediction Using Piloted Flight Simulation and Time-Accurate Airwakes

This paper gives an overview of the ship–helicopter dynamic interface simulation facility at the University of Liverpool, with an emphasis on recent improvements made through the inclusion of unsteady computational fluid dynamics (CFD) ship airwake data.AFLIGHTLAB model of an SH-60B Seahawk helicopter has been flown in a full motion base simulator to the deck of a Type 23 frigate and a Wave class auxiliary oiler, under the influence of unsteady airwakes derived from CFD. Pilot workload ratings have been obtained for the deck landing task, using both the Bedford workload rating scale and the deck interface pilot effort scale, from which fully simulated ship–helicopter operating limits have been derived. Analysis of pilot ratings, comments, and control inputs has also enabled both subjective and objective assessments of workloads at various wind-over-deck conditions, highlighting the dominant aerodynamic airwake features which contribute to the difficulty of the landing task. Having access to the underlying CFD data allows the aircraft handling qualities and pilot workload to be correlated with the aerodynamic characteristics of the airwake and identification of the geometric features of the ship that cause them.