Since the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom, Department of Defense (DoD) investment in unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) has exploded almost 700% to just under $4 billion per year in 2009. This expansion was caused by the successful application of UASs primarily in their role as intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) platforms, but also as ISR/strike platforms, because these particular mission sets fit the capabilities of UASs. Going forward with these successes, DoD should assess potential future UAS missions by first determining what particular characteristics of the ISR and ISR/strike missions made them successful as UAS missions, and then determining what other missions fit these same characteristics. The author contends that emergency intra-theater logistical resupply and mission-critical, time- sensitive (MCTS) intra-theater logistical resupply are missions that fit ISR and ISR/strike mission characteristics. These missions require persistent, efficient, modular systems that are integrated into a pervasive battle space. UASs designed specifically as logistical delivery platforms with modular ISR/strike capabilities and long endurance should be developed to fulfill these missions.
Logistics Aloft
2011
24 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
Aircraft , Logistics Military Facilities & Supplies , Cost effectiveness , Drones , Emergencies , Logistics support , Multimission , Prepositioning(Logistics) , Theater level operations , Timeliness , Afghanistan conflict , Air drop operations , Air strikes , Airlift operations , Endurance(General) , Fixed wing aircraft , Intelligence , Loitering , Reconnaissance , Rotary wing aircraft , Surveillance , Unmanned aircraft systems , Future missions , Intratheater resupply , Emergency resupply , Mission-critical time-sensitive resupply , Rq-4 aircraft , Mq-1 aircraft , Mq-9 aircraft , Mcts(Mission-critical time-sensitive) , Loitering with cargo , A160 aircraft , Uas(Unmanned aircraft systems)
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