General Information
The terms RPV (Remote-Piloted Vehicle) and UAV (Unmanned Aerial
Vehicle) are generally used interchangeably. RPV is a broad
term used for anything that is controlled externally by remote
control while UAV is used to describe an aircraft that is either
piloted from the ground or controlled autonomously with an in-flight
computer or a pre-programmed flight plan.
RPVs and UAVs can be categorizing into seven classes:
- Tactical - the catch-all for the 50 to 1000 lb deployable air vehicle;
- Endurance - capable of extended duration flight, typically 24 hrs or greater;
- Vertical Takeoff & Landing (VTOL) - has the capability of taking off and
landing in very tight areas, generally helicopter or tilt rotor type aircraft;
- Man Portable - light enough to be back-packed by an individual and launched by
hand-throwing or sling-shot mechanism, larger than micro air vehicles;
- Optionally Piloted Vehicle (OPV) - capable of manned or unmanned flight
operations, typically an adaptation of a general aviation aircraft;
- Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) - defined as having no dimension larger than 15 cm (6
in);
- Research - developed for specific investigations, typically with no production
intent.
Today there are more than 50 U.S. companies, academic institutions, and government
organizations developing over 150 UAV designs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q:
What, difference is there among the terms drone, RPV, UAV, and ROA?
A:
The term drone (Websters: "a pilotless airplane or ship
controlled by radio signals") was in vogue in the 1940s and 1950s
when they were used predominately as aerial targets, giving way to remotely
piloted vehicle (RPV) in the Vietnam era to distinguish their new
role as reconnaissance assets from that of their target cousins, then
evolving to unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in the 1980's, when
interest in them renewed, to show a break from the previous generation
technology and to cleanse any political/mental association with Vietnam.
In 1997, Federal Aviation Administration lawyers determined their
rule-making authority applied only to "aircraft," and, with
efforts underway to develop rules allowing UAVs into the national
airspace, the term remotely operated aircraft (ROA) was coined to
conform to FAA's statutory language.
Q:
What was the first UAV?
A:
Contrary to the generally acknowledged claimant to this title, the
Kettering Liberty Eagle, or "Bug," of 1918, a one-way flying
bomb developed by the American, Charles "Boss" Kettering, was
not the first UAV, American or otherwise. Indeed, Kettering was awarded
the contract for the Bug after Army MGen George Squier witnessed a
demonstration by Elmer Sperry's unmanned N-9 seaplane on 21 Nov 1917 on
Long Island. The Curtiss/Sperry Aerial Torpedo made its first successful
flight on 6 Mar 1918 at Copiague, Long Island, NY. The 950-lb UAV flew
1000 yards after being launched by a falling-weight catapult; five were
built. Subsequently, in Oct 1918, Kettering's 530-lb Bug made its first
successful flight; 20 were built, with production cut short by the war's
end. Both were more specifically the forerunners of today's cruise
missiles, which can be considered one-way UAVs. Sperry's son, Lawrence,
went on to develop the first radio-controlled airplane, a modification
to his Sperry Messenger, in 1920-21. The first returnable and reusable
UAV was the British Fairey "Queen" variant of the Fairey IIIF
aircraft, first flown in Sep 1932; three were built for use as target
drones. The American counterpart was the Radioplane RP-1 of 1935.
Q:
What advantages do UAVs offer over manned aircraft?
A:
UAVs can perform those missions considered "dull, dirty, or
dangerous" for their manned counterparts. Examples include orbiting
endlessly over a point for communications relay or jamming (dull),
collecting air samples to measure pollution or CW/BW toxins (dirty), and
flying reconnaissance over hostile air defenses (dangerous). And while
some will still contest it, it is increasingly accepted that UAVs cost
less to build (two to five times the weight of the pilot in specialized
equipment is needed just to support him, not to mention double, triple,
even quadruple redundant systems to ensure his return, not just the
aircraft's) and to operate (pilot proficiency flying is eliminated or
maintained on cheap semi-scale UAVs, oxygen servicing is eliminated,
etc.).
Q:
How many different kinds of UAVs are there?
A:
In the U.S. alone, some fifty companies, universities, and government
organizations are actively developing one or more of some 155 UAV
designs. They are being developed for the reconnaissance (military,
scientific, or otherwise) role and do not include their other unmanned
aircraft cousins, cruise missiles and target drones. These UAVs can
generally be categorized as (1) tactical, (2) endurance, (3) vertical
takeoff and landing (VTOL), (4) man portable, or hand-launched, (5)
optionally piloted vehicles (OPVs), (6) micro air vehicles (MAVs), and
(7) research (the UAV equivalent of X-planes).
Q:
How many UAVs are in operation today?
A:
The U.S. military currently is operating a fleet of 510 UAVs of ten
types, of which some 130 are actively engaged in flight operations at
any one time. Adding those flown by other agencies (NASA, DOE, etc.)
makes the total nearly 550.
Q:
How much is the Pentagon spending on UAVs?
A: In
Fiscal Year '98 (Oct 97-Sep 98), Congress budgeted $510 million for the
U.S. military to develop and procure UAVs; subsequent undistributed
reductions reduced this amount. During the previous three years, the
amounts were $553 million in FY95, $354 million in FY96, and $434
million in FY 97. The amount planned for the next five years (FY99-03)
totals $1.619 billion, or an average of some $324 million each year.
Q:
What does a UAV cost to buy? to operate?
A:
UAVs flying today range in price from $1000 to $14 million. [For
comparison, manned aircraft range in price from $20,000 to $500
million.] Examples: The developmental version of the Air Force/Teledyne
Ryan RQ-4/Global Hawk costs nearly $14 million with payload, the Air
Force/General Atomics RQ-1/Predator $3.3 million with payload, the Navy/PUI
RQ-2/Pioneer just over $900,000 with payload. Tactical size UAVs are
commercially available in the $250,000 range with payload, the Aerosonde
Robotic Aircraft's Atlantic-crossing Aerosonde runs $35,000, and MLB
offers mini (not micro) UAVs for around $1000 per aircraft. It is
a common mistake to focus on the price of the individual aircraft and
confuse it for the price of the UAV system, which includes its ground
control station and shelter, launching mechanism, and typically three or
more additional aircraft. These can make the price of an UAV system
two to ten times the price of its individual aircraft. Once bought and
deployed, operating costs are reportedly (Aviation Week & Space
Technology, 22 Jun 98, p.23) in the hundreds of dollars an hour for
Predator and tactical size UAVs. [For comparison, commercial helicopters
cost $600-800 an hour and a Boeing 747 airliner some $7400 an hour.]
