Accelerating the Kill Chain via Future Unmanned Aircraft

<p>Unmanned aircraft (UA) have evolved from simple reconnaissance assets into capable and persistent strike platforms in a short period of time. Looking ahead to the year 2025 what technologies will help the US military reduce the time it takes to find track and neutralize a target with UA? The United States can have the greatest impact in accelerating the kill chain by investing in research that advances autonomous UA operations and enables a Mobile Ad-hoc Network (MANET) using UA as communications nodes. This MANET should interface with the Internet to provide maximum warfighter access and it will relay information via a combination of radio frequency laser communication and satellite communication links. As warfighters we tend to focus more on the kinetic effects such as improving munitions instead of unglamorous but critical tasks such as gathering analyzing and distributing vital information to the right person for action. Autonomous UA operations will reduce manpower and bandwidth requirements while an improved airborne communications network will increase situational awareness for warfighters and decrease reliance on satellites. The military often seeks to revolutionize warfighting via cutting-edge technologies but it can often gain more by selectively improving existing technologies to promote autonomy and interoperability with less risk. Ironically accelerating the kill chain with capable sensor-shooters may be delayed more by political cultural and service doctrine biases than technological barriers. UA airspace integration deconfliction methods and inter-service command and control still warrant attention. By overcoming both technical and cultural barriers the United States can accelerate the kill chain and anticipate enemy actions instead of reacting to attacks.</p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore you will see the original copyright references library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world) and other notations in the work.</p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America and possibly other nations. Within the United States you may freely copy and distribute this work as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.</p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact this work may contain missing or blurred pages poor pictures errant marks etc. Scholars believe and we concur that this work is important enough to be preserved reproduced and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.</p>