Aviation Week & Space Technology - 30 March-12 April 2015

Deciphering

Casualties

Program predicts human impact

of attacks on ships

T

he U.S. Of ce of Naval Research (ONR) has wrapped up
development testing of a modeling technology designed
to predict the human impact of an attack on a ship dur-
ing combat, notably the result in terms of casualties and how
long it takes crewmembers to return to their posts.
ONR developed the Human Injury and Treatment (HIT)
model to provide data that historically has not been examined
by the Navy. The service has long compiled information that
relates to the survivability of all types of vessels in combat, but
this focuses on structural, equipment and systems issues.
According to ONR, HIT predicts injuries to crew based on
a number of attack consequences, both immediate and over
time—blast, pressure, smoke, fragmentation and other ef ects.
The program creates a 3-D model of a vessel and places sailors,
marines and commanders in positions that refl ect their duties.
For example, some personnel will be standing, some sitting,
a few may be sleeping, working on equipment or performing
other duties. A number could be on deck, below deck or on the
bridge. “HIT... simulates patient movement and medical re-
sponse,” ONR states, “tracking outcomes for patients and their

ability to return to duty within 72 hr. after a simulated attack.”

“Understanding the medical and operational impact of crew

injuries opens up new possibilities in planning medical respons-

es for such events,” says ONR about the modeling technology.

The resulting data is intended to help the Navy improve the ef-

fectiveness of onboard medical response and treatment. It also

provides a cost-benefi t analysis derived from a number of fac-

tors, most notably the ability of wounded crew to return to duty.

The HIT program also might have applications for terror at-

tacks. U.S. Navy ships can draw fi re in areas in which no combat

threats are perceived. The suicide attack on the USS Cole in Oc-

tober 2000, which killed 17 sailors and injured 39, is one notable

example. On Aug. 19, 2005, two ships docked at the Red Sea port

of Aqaba, Jordan, the USS Ashland and USS Kearsarge, were

targets of three rockets, none of which hit the vessels.

With the developmental stage of the HIT project conclud-

ed, ONR is looking to hand the technology over to the Naval

Surface Warfare Center Carderock for more development

and testing. There is no word yet as to when HIT will be used

in fl eetwide data analysis. c

—Pat Toensmeier

The HIT casualty modeling program predicts how soon injured

crewmembers can return to their posts after an attack.

U.S. NAVY

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AviationWeek.com/dti AVIATION WEEK & SPACE TECHNOLOGY DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL MARCH 30 -APRIL 12, 2015 DTI5