In the United Kingdom, the major source of training
for aerial photographers has been the Royal Air
Force which, since the First World War, has trained
thousands of qualified photographers to use and
service a variety of air cameras as well as to process
air films and to produce mosaics. Although RAF
courses established the majority of trained
photographers, up to 1960 at least (when the subject
became a part of general education), only a few had
specific experience in mapping. In the meantime,
commercial survey companies provided on-the-job
training to mostly former RAF personnel employed
as survey flight navigators, camera operators and
laboratory technicians, a system not without merit at
the time, but soon to become inefficient for an
industry that needed to keep up with the latest
developments in technology and method.
By 1971, the International Institute for Aerospace
Survey and Earth Sciences (ITC) had moved from
Delft to Enschede, The Netherlands where courses in
aerial photography became well established. For the
next 20 years, the one year ITC Diploma courses in
Air Survey Photography provided a valuable service
for the international mapping community. With
custom designed laboratories, its own twin engined
survey aircraft (Piper Navajo Chieftain) complete
with Zeiss RMK or Wild RC10 cameras and
supported with various survey simulators, the course
expanded and became ever more efficient, to the
point of being vastly uneconomic! As with many an
enterprise, as soon as things become ideal, they also
become too expensive. Finally the ITC course ended
in 1990.
THE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
CERTIFICATE IN AIR SURVEY
PHOTOGRAPHY (CASP)
In order to retain the initiative established by ITC, a
similar but shorter four month course in air survey
photography was established by the Department of
Photogrammetry and Surveying at University College
London, in co-operation with two commercial survey
companies, Aerial Imaging Systems Ltd., which
specialises in consultancy and training, and
PhotoAir, which provides the aircraft and laboratory
facilities. The first CASP course was conducted from
April to August, 1991.
The nature of the CASP course is to offer a
foundation study of four months covering the basic
principles of air survey navigation and photography,
with elements of photogrammetry, cartography,
remote sensing and aviation in support. The course is
296
costed realistically and, as a foundation course, is
predominantly theoretical in content, the overall
principle being to learn on the ground and practice in
the air. To this end,the course is about 65 per cent
theoretical. It covers all aspects currently required by
students who need a refresher course as well as those
who require initial training in the subject.
Since practical training for survey flying is expensive
and, in many cases, is best experienced with the
survey organisation concerned, the UCL CASP
course is designed to provide the most economic and
cost effective training possible. It gives a sound
theoretical foundation supported by intensive
demonstration and adequate supervised practical
experience.
A considerable number of trained and experienced
air survey personnel, including many ITC alumni,
now require further training in a variety of subjects
(such as advanced survey navigation methods) and so
the CASP course is designed to enable further
practical training in a number of specialised areas.
These advanced additional courses are provided by
Aerial Imaging Systems Ltd. (AIS) and PhotoAir and
are extra to the CASP course (Appendix A).
DETAILS OF THE CASP CURRICULUM
The four month CASP course is divided into two
parts , separated by a week in which students visit air
survey and photographic organisations in Belgium.
Part 1 is held at University College London and is
mainly theoretical, together with demonstrations and
educational visits. Instruction is provided by staff of
University College London (UCL) and Aerial
Imaging Systems Ltd. (AIS).
Part 1 Studies
Week 1 (UCL/AIS). Registration and introduction to
the course. Mathematics. Calculator software. Visit
to PhotoAir.
Week 2 (AIS). Photography, cameras, air survey
cameras. Basic mission calculations. Types of
mission, specifications, mapping cameras, small
format cameras, photographic theory, image quality,
film processing.
Week 3 (UCL). Introduction to photogrammetry.
Photographic geometry, scale and cover. Map
projections. Demonstrations.