In 2015, Pinnacle Solutions, Inc. contributed significant support to scientists and experiments on the NASA Aircraft Maintenance and Operations Contract (AMOC), highlighted by the completion of several successful missions:

Operation IceBridge (OIB) – OIB, a six-year NASA mission, is the largest airborne survey of Earth’s polar ice ever flown. It will yield an unprecedented three-dimensional view of Arctic and Antarctic ice sheets, ice shelves and sea ice. The flights conducted in support of OIB will provide a yearly, multi-instrument look at the behavior of the rapidly changing features of the Greenland and Antarctic ice. Pinnacle supported this year’s OIB mission with complete aircraft support including a Pilot, First Officer, Flight Engineer, Loadmaster, and two Mechanics from March 9 through May 22, 2015.

Carbon in Arctic Reservoirs Vulnerability Experiment (CARVE) – CARVE used an Arctic-proven C-23 Sherpa aircraft to fly an innovative airborne remote sensing payload which included an infrared camera and a nadir-viewing spectrometer to deliver the first simultaneous measurements of surface parameters that control gas emissions (i.e., soil moisture, freeze/thaw state, surface temperature) and total atmospheric columns of carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide. Pinnacle supported this year’s CARVE mission in Fairbanks, AK and Yellowknife, Canada with a Pilot, First Officer, and a Mechanic from April through November 2015.

North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES) – NAAMES is a high-impact, interdisciplinary investigation focused on marine ecosystems and aerosol properties in the climate sensitive North Atlantic. The focus of the mission is the study the annual life cycle of phytoplankton and the impact small airborne particles derived from marine organisms have on climate in the North Atlantic. Pinnacle supported this year’s NAAMES mission in St. Johns, Newfoundland with complete aircraft support including a Pilot, First Officer, Flight Engineer, Loadmaster, two Mechanics, and an IT Engineer from November 9-28, 2015. In preparation for this mission, Pinnacle also provided Structural, Mechanical, and Electrical Engineering design and manufacturing support that resulted in the modification of one of NASA’s C-130 aircraft for it to be fitted with instruments mounted on both wing tips, a 55” laser port in the belly, multiple sensors and probes mounted on the fuselage, and radome modifications to collect data.

As the prime contractor, Pinnacle Solutions, Inc. fulfills the requirement of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) for aircraft program management and flight and maintenance support services. These services include mission management: logistics, mission planning (cost, schedule, etc.), field support, ground and flight safety support; engineering: installation design and analysis, upload and download support, and airworthiness oversight; and maintenance support: standard aircraft maintenance and assistance with installation, training and removal of equipment from the aircraft. This contract supports NASA requirements by providing qualified and current Pilots, Instructor Pilots, and Flight Test Aircrew for support missions and recurrent instruction, along with the flight testing of many fixed, unmanned, and rotary wing aircraft, including two C-130H, one P-3, six C-23, one King Air 200, two T-34B, one RQ-4 Global Hawk (temporary assignment), and one UH-1. Pinnacle, and our major subcontractors L-3 COM and Wyle, are responsible for all aspects of P-3, C-23, and C-130 Pilot, Flight Engineer, Loadmaster, maintenance and engineering support for NASA science missions around the globe.