Part 3 covers the acquisition of the target latlon location; information that can be shared with other platforms. Back in the days was the A-10C, now it can be a AV-8B N/A or a F/A-18C.
This part also cover the reception of latlong coordinates and how are the fed into the Ka-50’s avionics.
There are two possible ways to get a target’s coordinates: with the ABRIS or the PVI-800. The first one is more precise (~20m), the second one is far less precise (~200m) but it’s faster.
Getting coordinates with the ABRIS
Before using this method you need to lock a target and save it into your PRTz, so it will appear in your ABRIS.
To get the coordinates of a target we will use the ABRIS in ERBL mode. To enter this mode, cycle with the 5th FSK, entering the NAV mode. Pressing this FSK enable the ERBL mode: a cross will appear and, below the map, you will find coordinates of the position under the cross as well as other data, like bearing and distance. As you have already imaged, you can now move the cross over the symbol of a target acquired with the PRTz and read its coordinates.
To move the cross use the right knob on the ABRIS. Press it to toggle from vertical and horizontal slew and vice-versa. To obtain the best result, use the Zoom in FSK.
This procedure is not very fast and requires a lot of attention, therefore it’s not a bad idea to recon a Battlefield Area, save your targets in the PRTz, move into a safe and covered position and only then communicate the coordinates.
An alternative to this procedure uses the “Info” function (first FSK in the picture above). This functions provides some info like coordinates and elevation of the selected position. However, while acting as an AFAC, you usually need bearing and distance from a known position (usually an IP) in order to provide a complete 9-line procedure and you can’t get those data with the Info function.
Getting coordinates with the PVI-800
We’re now going to see how to save a target position and get its coordinates. This method is faster than the one which uses the ABRIS, but it’s less accurate.
First of all, we have to prepare the PVI-800:
- set the PVI mode in ‘EDIT’ with the PVI Master Mode knob;
- set the switch next to the PVI Master Mode knob (‘INU/UPDATE’) to the ‘INU’ position (“I-251V Shkval – Fly over INU update” – see the Black Shark manual, page 6-65);
- select the ‘NAV TGT’ button on the PVI-800.
A number will appear on the PVI-800. This number represents how many NAV TGT points are stored inside PVI-800’s memory. Now select a number, press the Shkval designate key (with the laser in STAND-BY position) and the coordinates of the position pointed by the Shkval will appear on the PVI-800. Now you can save this data by pressing the ‘ENTER’ key.
NAV TGT points saved with the PVI-800 are represented in the ABRIS by a rectangle with a number written into. Each number corresponds to the number assigned to each NAV TGT point saved.
A NAV TGT point can be assigned directly to a PRTz target, just select a target type (first row on the PRTz) and press ‘SEND/MEM’.
Just remember to restore the PVI-800 to previous settings, turning the PVI Master Mode knob on ‘OPER’ position, and the switch next to it in ‘UPDATE’ position.
Receiving coordinates
As you can read coordinates with the PVI-800, so you can enter coordinates with it.
The procedure is quite similar to the one used to get coordinates of a target locked with the Shkval:
1. set the PVI mode in ‘EDIT’ with the PVI Master Mode knob;
2. select the ‘NAV TGT’ button on the PVI-800;
3. select a number, which will identify this NAV TGT point.
Now you can enter the coordinates. Remember to use the button 0 (zero) for North and Eest, and button 1 for South and West. When you have finished, press ‘ENTER’ to save. Again, restore the PVI Master Mode knob to its previous position.
NAV TGT points are represented by a square with a number in the middle (this number identifies the NAV TGT point). Therefore, pressing a number in the PVI-800 while in NAV TGT mode will select the corresponding point. Selected points will flash on the ABRIS.
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