OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE
ADAPTS TO SURVEILLANCECHALLENGES WITH ADVANCEDVIDEO CAPABILITIESINTELLIGENT VIDEO SURVEILLANCESYSTEM IS USED TO CONDUCTINVESTIGATIONS, IMPLEMENTPERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS,
AND TRAIN PERSONNEL
Offutt Air Force Base, which celebrated its 100th anniversary
in 2018, has a rich military legacy that includes more than four
decades as headquarters for the former Strategic Air Command(SAC), which is now US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), andcentral roles in both World War II and the Cold War. Today, Offutt
hosts combat-ready air crew and collects signals intelligence for
their areas of global responsibility. The base houses multiple typesof mission-ready aircraft, including those from the 55th Wing andthe plane tasked with transporting the Secretary of Defense.

CASE STUDY | OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE

CUSTOMER PROFILE
Offutt Air Force BaseBellevue, Nebraska

SOLUTIONS• (4) 30L-H4PRO-B - 7K (30 MP) H.264 HD PRO with
LightCatcher Technology• (2) LEF247028TA2 - Tamron 24-70 mm, f/2.8, Gen 2,Auto-Iris, Vari Focal• (2) LEF7020028CA - Canon, 70-200 mm, f/2.8, AutoIris Vari Focal• Avigilon Control Center software to view and easily
retrieve recorded video events.

BENEFITS• Ability to record and monitor the entire landing andtakeoff of aircraft all the way to the final turn andbeyond.
• Real-time flight path recordings now available in highdefinition and smooth framerates, with recordings
going back two months.
• Increased situational awareness during emergencies
and natural disasters.
• Installation, support, and maintenance of the systemprovided by Motorola Solutions and Inteconnex.

CHALLENGE
LIMITED SURVEILLANCE CAPABILITIESHINDER INVESTIGATORSREMOTE MONITORING CAPABILITIESCOULD PREVENT ACCIDENTS,
IMPROVE MISSION OUTCOMES

NEED FOR INCREASED SITUATIONAL
AWARENESS

After a crash involving a military plane in Alaska
occurred, cell phone footage proved instrumental
in recreating the incident and understanding
its cause: Although it was fortunate to havethe cell phone footage, the poor resolution andlimited range of a simple camera phone left manyquestions unanswered. As a result, Air Forcepersonnel realized a more robust and reliable
video and camera system was needed. What theyneeded was a camera system, with surveillancetechnology capabilities advanced enough to morethoroughly analyze takeoffs and landings.

Moreover, remote monitoring, both inreal-time and by going back to watch recorded
video, offered many additional benefits. In a
real-time emergency, officials could be alerted
quickly to coordinate a response. By going backto watch recorded video, Offutt could also study
takeoffs and landings to improve safety training.
However, Offutt required a system that would
let them analyze high quality video going backmonths. This meant that any system would
need to manage bandwidth with extreme ultraefficiently so that resolution and frame rates
were not lost.

Much of the Omaha region that surrounds
Offutt is prone to tornadoes and flooding. In
addition to its primary safety and training needs,
any camera solution would need to also offer
increased overall situation awareness of thebase. The increased monitoring capabilities could
be beneficial during emergencies and naturaldisasters.

Offutt needed a system that could record aircrafton runways during landing and take-off all theway to the final turn, which could be up to 4.5
miles away from the camera location. Crucially,
the recordings needed to be clear, high-resolution
quality, with no missed frames to provide
smooth video for detection of minute details
in milliseconds. That level of detail is criticalto investigations into incidents including hardlandings, fires, engine scrapes, and more.

This type of flight recording for safety training
had never been attempted, so Offutt would beblazing a new trail and creating a solution that
others in the military may be able to benefit. For
this reason, Offutt required a partnership thatwent beyond technology, to include top-notch
consultation, installation, and ongoing support.

SOLUTIONS
Offutt chose a suite of Avigilon cameras because they met every one of their mission requirements.
These cameras were installed on the Air Traffic Control Tower near the center point of the runway.
The cameras feature 30 MP of resolution, and using Avigilon’s patented High Definition Stream
Management (HDSM), the video can be recorded and viewed in real time at full-frame rate of eightframes per second while using minimal bandwidth.
Avigilon’s video security and video analytics are designed to provide the control and efficiency so thatyou get the right information at the right time. This allows accurate verification and fast response fordecisive action. The base was outfitted with a number of Avigilon H4 Pro cameras that include
LightCatcher™ technology to provide unparalleled image quality in low-light conditions. These highmegapixel cameras can cover wide areas of a site with great detail using a single installation point.
This level of detail is critical to investigations into incidents including hard landings, fires, engine
scrapes and more. The system may be integrated with other base systems, such as access control, inthe future. In addition, the system’s breakthrough bandwidth management enables high resolution
recording and crystal-clear video with storage going back two months, a critical tool for flight safety
investigations and training.

CASE STUDY | OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE

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THE BENEFITS
THE BIG PICTURE: TAKEOFF AND LANDING CAUGHT ON CAMERA, FROM FINAL TURN AND BEYOND
Offutt is now able to record and monitor the entire takeoff and landing of aircraft all the way to final turn and beyond. Flight path recordings are available
in high definition, in real time, with recordings going back two months. The extended length of recording time is important because Offutt safety officers
often look back days or weeks at previous incidents. Now, they can search for precise timing and recreate exactly what happened during an incident.
With the Avigilon system installed, Offutt receives 24/7/365 surveillance with unrivalled resolution, even in low light. With the option to swap out opticallenses, Offutt has the adaptability to upgrade sight distance and resolution even further in the future. While today the system is standalone, in the future,
Offutt can choose to integrate it with other base systems, such as access control.
“Motorola Solutions and Inteconnex teamed up to get the job done. With a team dedicated to the product and installation, the level of service they provide
the customer is amazing.”

INCREASED BANDWIDTH CAPABILITIES EXPAND ANALYTIC POSSIBILITIESOffutt now has a system that can manage bandwidth extremely efficiently, allowing them to record high-resolution streams in real-time or store up to twomonths of recorded footage. Crucially, Avigilon’s breakthrough bandwidth management allows full frame rates of eight frames per second so Offutt cansee minute details, even three miles away from the camera.
“When it comes to flight safety, fractions of seconds are critically important,” said Lt. Col. Alessandro Bruzzano. “So, it’s incredible to have high resolution
video, with full frame rates, from 2-3 miles away. Plus, the low-light quality is fantastic, which is ‘icing on the cake’.”

AT A MOMENT’S NOTICE—SITUATIONAL AWARENESS MAKES THE DIFFERENCE IN EMERGENCIES
While not the primary function of the Avigilon system, Offutt’s flightpath recording system offers additional benefits such as increasing situationalawareness during emergencies and natural disasters. During a recent mass flooding event at the base, water levels rose so fast and so high, that manybase monitoring systems were shut down. Avigilon stayed up and running and helped base personnel monitor water levels remotely. Officials had a remote
view of the base, with the ability to pan and zoom to see details. Offutt also has the ability to share real-time and recorded video with base security teams
anytime access is needed.
“During the flood, even though the base was evacuated, we had a bird’s eye view of the situation and were able to effectively monitor developments,” said
Lt. Col. Bruzzano. “It means no matter the situation we face, we always have eyes on the ground.”

A TRUE PARTNERSHIP
Importantly, Offutt received personalized, fast, and professional installation, support, and maintenance of the system from Motorola Solutions and its local
security system integrator. Offutt only needs to undertake minimal upkeep, such as cleaning the camera lenses; the Motorola Solutions team does the rest.

GENERAL AND PRODUCT INFORMATION
For general information about Motorola Solutions, visit www.motorolasolutions.com.
For Avigilon Series and other video surveillance product information, visit Avigilon Video Security & Analytics.

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