DUST CONTROL IN SAUDI ARABIA

File: DOC_87_DUST_CONTROL_IN_SAUDI_ARABIA_002.txt
Page: 002
Total Pages: 8
      night vision goggle crew returning from a mis~ion makes its

final approach to a desert helipad     ~fter touching down  the

aviator begins his taxi to parking     Passing an area of loose

blo~ing sand the pilot momentaril',  loses visual references to the

front and side.    Dust oarticles strike the rotor blades torcino

an eerie  `halo'; navigation l~ghts become obscured.  On the

par-king ramp   a ground guide stands with two lighted batons held

high.   He hopes to guide the crew into parking while avoiding a

collision with the birds already parked.   Under his breath the

ground guide curses the dust and wonders if hLs batons are still

visible

THE PROBLEM

    Dust has always been an inconvenience, but early reports from

Operation Desert Shield list dust as a major operational  factor

Requests for assistance from the field and various agencies have

sparked interest in dust control~  ~s the Directorate of Military

Engineering started to research dust pall iatives we recognized

the unique aspects of our current problem.  Most of the organized

research on soil behavior and dust assumes a temperate or

tropical environment.   ~ttacking the Desert Shield dust problem

requires us to study the local  climate and geology.

    Saudi ~rabia is a desert area ~ith the internal drainage

pattern typical of arid reaions.   In a temperate climate water

moves so~i  particles   The finer the particle the further it