What’s new and what’s next by Michelle Vigo


How the Army thinks, fights, and engages with the enemy has evolved since the inception of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), the growing demand for which is driving improvements in availability and capability.


tion of its Manned Unmanned Systems Integration Capability (MUSIC) on Sept. 16 at Dugway Proving Ground, UT (see related article, Page 44).


T


“We’re not buying anything new except for UAS,” said MG Tim Crosby, Program Executive Officer (PEO) Aviation, speak- ing June 23 at the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Warfighter Forum in Tucson, AZ. The teaming of manned and unmanned aircraft is driving the way the Army fights, Crosby said, making it even more effi- cient and effective. The fact that UAS are


he Army continues to lead the way in manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T). It staged the largest-ever demonstra-


now part of PEO Aviation allows synergy across all platforms, Crosby added.


UAS continue to fly at a very high opera- tional tempo with more than 1.2 million flight hours, 90 percent of those in com- bat operations. Meanwhile, the demand for UAS continues to increase, whether for intelligence, surveillance, and recon- naissance roles or in attack missions.


“Across the spectrum, we’re seeing increas- ing uses of systems,” said Tim Owings, PEO Aviation’s Deputy Project Man- ager UAS. “The technologies for the next generation of stuff are starting to come to fruition and allow us to advance ourselves into things like 4G networks,


smartphones, and lower-cost ways of pro- ducing end product.


“The Army has come a long way for UAS, but it is still in its infancy in terms of what’s going to be happening over the course of the next few years,” Owings said.


IN-THEATER DEMAND The Army has more than balanced the drawdown in Iraq with the deployment of UAS in Afghanistan, where UAS opera- tors fly about 250,000 flight hours a year, Owings said.


The Small UAS Product Office, within PEO Aviation’s Project Manager Unmanned Aircraft Systems (PM UAS), is conducting


ARMY UAS


AS C.ARMY.MI L


39


ACQUISITION


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140