|
Air Force leaders outlined what the next 20 years will look like
for remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) in the Small Unmanned Aircraft
Systems Flight Plan published April 30, 2016.
“The Small UAS
Flight Plan outlines a vision and strategy for the continued
development, operation and sustainment of SUAS over the next 20
years,” said Lt. Gen. Robert Otto, the deputy chief of staff for
intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. “Integrating SUAS
into the Air Force's ISR portfolio enables a more agile force that
will help meet future warfighter demands in both permissive and
highly contested environments.”
The flight plan presents an
aggressive but realistic vision on how the Air Force must take
significant steps, not only in system acquisition, but also in
adaptive warfighting concepts, to integrate and institutionalize an
Airmen-centric family of SUAS as exponential force multipliers
across all domains. The SUAS concept supports the Defense Department
and Air Force's Better Buying initiatives: reversing the cost curve
by looking at lower-cost alternatives, enabling operational agility
against a diverse set of adversaries and operational environments.
Capt. Lee M. Todd, an engineer at the Air Force Research Laboratory,
briefs media during the release of the Small Unmanned Aircraft
System Flight Plan at the Pentagon Conference Center May 17, 2016,
in Washington, D.C. Integration of SUAS into operations across all
domains and levels of warfare will increase the Air Force's ability
to meet emerging requirements of combatant commanders. (U.S. Air
Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Anthony Nelson Jr.) |
“RPAs have been foundational to the growth of the Air
Force's globally integrated ISR enterprise, but as operating
environments become more complex, budgets plateau, and
technology proliferation neutralizes our asymmetric
advantage, we must address future demands with a new way of
thinking,” said Col. Brandon Baker, the director of RPA
capabilities. “SUAS offer a way to provide more capability
and capacity to the warfighter at equal or lower operational
cost.”
The plan also gives industry partners an
outlook on the capabilities the Air Force wants to have in
the future, ranging from new SUAS platforms to advancements
in collaborative networks, resilient and secure
communications, and higher levels of autonomy. Teaming with
industry will enable the rapid advancement of equivalent RPA
capabilities in a compact, cost benefiting and operationally
successful family of SUAS focused on Air Force roles and
mission.
“There is so
much more that can be done with SUAS,” Baker said. “SUAS
will enable new operational concepts like teaming, swarming
and loyal wingman, which allow for a single operator to
control large numbers of platforms.”
Additionally,
with infinitely new sensors and payloads available across
the globe, the incorporation of automation and novel
analytical approaches will be required to efficiently and
effectively manage the Air Force's processing, exploitation
and dissemination to alleviate potentially overwhelming
manpower requirements.
Looking beyond the next
decade, SUAS and RPA capabilities will have the potential to
meet many surveillance and C4ISR roles for the Air Force.
The future of the Air Force's RPA programs will continuously
evolve to allow the Air Force to remain the leader in air,
space and cyberspace.
By Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs
Air Force News Service
Copyright 2016
Comment on this article |
