Executive Summary - NASA

UAV Roadmap 2002 – Section 2Current UAV Programshas been awarded an agreement as part of the MAV ACTD, which pushes the envelope insmall, lightweight propulsion, sensing, and communication technologies. Following itsMilitary Utility Assessment (MUA) in FY04, 25 MAV systems are to transfer to theArmy in FY05. A third effort, by DARPA’s Synthetic Multifunctional Materialsprogram, has developed a 6-ounce MAV, the AeroVironment Wasp, having an integratedwing-and-battery which has flown for 1.8 hours. www.darpa.mil/tto/programs/mavWasp iStar KestrelAeroVironment Allied Aerospace HoneywellWeight: .04 lb 5 lb 25 lbLength: 8 in 12 in 42 inDiameter: 13 in wingspan 9 in 17 inPayload: .01 lb 1 lb 10 lbCeiling: 1200 ft 16,000 ft TBDRadius: 0.5 nm 5.5 nm 11 nmEndurance: 100 min 40 min 120 min2.4 UAV Financial DataBetween 1990 and 1999, the Department of Defense invested over $3 billion inUAV development, procurement, and operations. The current FY03-09 PresidentialBudget for UAV programs of $16.2 billion will help multiply that amount by nearly sixtimes in the current decade (see Figure 2.5-1). Plus-ups in the wake of September 11increased the FY02 UAV budget figure by $250M, and make FY03 the first billion-dollaryear in UAV history (see Table 2.5-1). In numbers of UAVs, by 2010, the U.S. UAVinventory is expected to quadruple from 80 today to over 300 (not counting micro andmini UAVs) and to support a wider range of missions—Signal Intelligence (SIGINT)reconnaissance, communication relay, and SEAD—compared to today’s imageryreconnaissance and strike capability.19