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Ghost Operations Guide

Summary

After reading this guide, an operator can build, commission, and deploy libdrone Ghost for long-endurance survey and security-sensitive operations. The guide covers Ghost-specific hardware decisions — Li-Ion battery pack, CF plate arms, mandatory ESP32-S3 — and the operational considerations that follow from Ghost's acoustic profile and IFF architecture. For the ArduPilot commissioning that Ghost shares with Bandit, read → sk-ardupilot-operator-guide first.

Concept

What makes Ghost different in the field

Ghost shares its electronics stack with Bandit — same FC, same ESC, same ELRS link, same ArduPilot parameters. What the operator experiences differently:

Endurance: 30–45 minutes versus Bandit's 12 minutes. Mission planning changes. Batteries require longer charging cycles. Post-flight battery temperature management is different for Li-Ion chemistry.

Acoustic profile: Ghost at 50m AGL produces approximately 50–55 dB(A) versus Bandit's 60–65 dB(A). The detection range reduction is real and operationally meaningful for security-sensitive missions — but it is not invisibility. → acoustic-signature-design quantifies it.

Arm repair: Ghost arms are laser-cut 2mm CF plate, not 3D-printed. Field repair requires pre-cut spare plates and an M3 hex driver — no print time, but no improvisation either. Carry spares. → cf-plate-arms has the repair procedure.

IFF mandatory: Ghost always flies with ESP32-S3 active. The EMCON kill switch is a deliberate RF control tool, not an emergency measure. → esp32-s3-companion and → iff-architecture.

Reference

Ghost-specific parameter changes from Bandit baseline

``` ; Battery failsafe — Li-Ion thresholds (NOT LiPo defaults) BATT_LOW_VOLT,14.4 ; 3.6V/cell — Li-Ion flatter discharge BATT_CRT_VOLT,14.0 ; 3.5V/cell — minimum safe discharge

; Flight performance — larger props, lower authority ANGLE_MAX,2500 ; 25° max lean (vs 35° for Bandit) PILOT_SPEED_UP,100 ; Conservative climb rate (cm/s)

; Motor — low-KV 12-inch MOT_THST_HOVER,0.35 ; Starting estimate; auto-learns after hover ```

Li-Ion battery handling

→ li-ion-batteries for the full chemistry, construction, and charging reference. Key operational differences from LiPo:

  • Charge at 0.5–1C (3–6A for the 6000mAh pack) — slower than LiPo
  • Nominal voltage per cell is 3.6V, not 3.7V — BATT_LOW_VOLT must be recalibrated below the LiPo default
  • No puffing failure mode — Li-Ion cells fail by capacity fade over hundreds of cycles, not by physical swelling
  • Store at 3.6V/cell (50% charge), not the 3.8V/cell LiPo storage voltage

CF plate arm field kit

Carry per-deployment: 2 spare arm plate pairs (4 plates), M3 hex driver, 4× M3×10mm bolts with Loctite 243 dots pre-applied. Arm replacement: 15 minutes maximum.

Procedure

Pre-deployment EMCON check

Ghost operates in three EMCON levels defined in → operational-security:

EMCON standard (civilian survey): All emissions active. ESP32-S3 running CoT bridge, Remote ID, and detection logging. ELRS at 100mW. VTX at full power.

EMCON reduced (security-sensitive, non-contested): VTX at 25mW. ELRS at 25mW. ESP32-S3 CoT bridge and Remote ID active. Flip EMCON switch to reduced power mode before launch.

EMCON minimum (contested environment): Toggle the EMCON kill switch on the Ghost body. All ESP32-S3 RF (WiFi, BLE, Remote ID) cuts immediately. Detection logging to MicroSD continues. IR strobe continues — strobe is independent of the kill switch. VTX disabled via ArduPilot relay.

Verify EMCON kill switch function before every deployment in security-sensitive context: activate switch, confirm ATAK CoT icon freezes within 5 seconds, confirm BLE packets cease on a phone scanner.

Acoustic profile measurement (Bandit B2.1 method)

Before first operational deployment, measure Ghost's actual detection range:

  1. Ghost in Loiter at 50m AGL, operator at launch point with QGC
  2. Second operator walks downwind on flat terrain until aircraft is inaudible — marks distance
  3. Walks back until reliably audible again — marks distance
  4. Repeat upwind and crosswind
  5. Average of three directions is the acoustic detection range in these specific conditions

Record conditions (wind speed, temperature, terrain) with the result. Detection range is weather-dependent — warm calm evenings produce longer ranges than cold windy ones.

Post-flight Li-Ion handling

Unlike LiPo, Li-Ion packs do not require immediate cooling or storage voltage management after flight. Standard procedure:

  1. Allow pack to cool to ambient temperature before charging (15 min minimum)
  2. Check cell balance on charger — all four series groups should be within 50mV of each other
  3. If balance deviation > 100mV, do a balance-only charge before next flight
  4. Log charge cycle count — replace pack after 300 full cycles or when capacity falls below 80% of nominal

Rationale

Ghost operations differ enough from standard Bandit operations to warrant a dedicated guide. The Li-Ion chemistry, CF arm repair workflow, EMCON procedure, and acoustic measurement methodology are all Ghost-specific. Incorporating them into a general ArduPilot guide would either require extensive platform conditionals or bury Ghost-specific content behind shared content that Ghost operators do not need to re-read.

Connections

requires: - ghost-variant - ardupilot-copter - li-ion-batteries - cf-plate-arms - esp32-s3-companion - acoustic-signature-design - iff-architecture - operational-security related: - sk-ardupilot-operator-guide - sk-security-operations-guide - bandit-variant - ardupilot-failsafe - iff-layers leads_to: - sk-ardupilot-operator-guide - operational-security - iff-architecture