PROJECT MUDDY HILL
Abstract
Project Muddy Hill was established to evaluate the feasibility of an airborne multi-sensor night reconnaissance system. It was a Navy project, with a modified Lockheed P-2H as the test vehicle and U.S. Navy personnel from Patuxent NAS, Maryland, assigned to manage and carry out the test program. Two Air Force officers participated in the program as an Air Force Liaison team. The primary sensors contained in the aircraft were a real-time forward looking infrared scanner, a low light level television, and a pair of downward looking infrared recording devices. After equipment installation, some testing was accomplished at Greenville, Texas, and Patuxent River, Maryland, before the project deployed to Southeast Asia for operational testing and evaluation. The project was located at Udorn RTAFB, Thailand, for four months, and operational missions were flown over enemy occupied areas of Laos. Numerous technical problems associated with the equipment resulted in excessive out-of-commission status and marginal operational capability. It must be concluded that the project was unsuccessful in performing effective reconnaissance in mountainous jungle terrain but its primary value was in revealing deficiencies to be corrected in follow-on programs.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1968
- Accession Number
- AD0389302
Entities
People
- Michael J. Trimpert
- William M. Kovalick