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UAV: The Predator By: Jonathan Carroca , Charles Coushaine , and Adam Dunbar. Introduction. Troops patrolling boarders and surveying land are unable to do their job as efficiently as possible both during wartime and out of wartime.
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UAV: The PredatorBy: Jonathan Carroca, Charles Coushaine, and Adam Dunbar
Troops patrolling boarders and surveying land are unable to do their job as efficiently as possible both during wartime and out of wartime. • Troops are known to patrol and survey land and when they leave, intruders often try to penetrate boarders often times transporting illegal items and drugs. • Lack of adequate personnel to survey land and protect borders while being unnoticed poses a threat to security. • National and international borders are all susceptible to intrusion even with patrolling on a regular basis. Problem Space
Problem Space The Middle East
Problem Space The United States
Proposed Technology The Predator
Predator Characteristics • Primary Function: Armed reconnaissance, airborne surveillance and target acquisition Contractor: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Incorporated Power Plant:Rotax 914F four cylinder engine Thrust: 115 horsepowerWingspan: 55.25 feet (16.8 meters) Length: 27 feet (8.22 meters) Height: 6.9 feet (2.1 meters) Weight: 1,130 pounds ( 512 kilograms) empty Maximum takeoff weight: 2,250 pounds (1,020 kilograms) Fuel Capacity: 665 pounds (100 gallons) Payload: 450 pounds (204 kilograms) • Speed: Cruise speed around 84 mph (70 knots), up to 135 mph Range: up to 400 nautical miles (454 miles) Ceiling: up to 25,000 feet (7,620 meters) Armament: two laser-guided AGM-114 Hellfire missilesCrew (remote): Three (pilot, sensor operator, and mission intelligence coordinator)Initial operational capability: March 2005 Unit Cost: $20 million (fiscal 2009 dollars) (includes four aircraft, ground control stations, and Predator Primary Satellite Link)Inventory: Active force, 130; ANG, 8; Reserve, 0
What is important about it? • Can replace manned reconnaissance on the ground • Can go undetected to the human eye with the ability to fly 25,000 ft in the air. • MQ-1 can carry a payload of 450 lbs • Controlled remotely from ground control far away from action • Operates not by itself but using: a ground control station, a Predator Primary Satellite Link, operations crews and maintenance crews for deployed 24-hour operations
Predator Test • Background • Driving in a Ford Explorer • Driving at a constant speed of 60 mph • 10 min. head start to drive anywhere in the Mojave Desert
Cost effectiveness when doing reconnaissance in both small and large areas. Loss of life is minimized. We can do reconnaissance without being spotted, due to ability to climb to such a high altitude. Some are equipped with weaponry which can be used to strike down targets. Potential Benefits
Makes intruders always aware of what is going on around. • They would know they could be located and killed or detained within moments of being seen by the Predator. • They can see through clouds. • They are equipped with night vision . • Have the ability to stream video to anywhere (President, Secretary of Defense, etc.) . • They're 1/20th of the weight of a fighter jet so they can fly longer on less fuel. Benefits continued…
Disadvantages • Initial cost is high at approx. $20 million per unit. • Equipping the Predator with weapons can become expensive. • Requires trained staff of 55 individuals to operate them. • There is a high operation cost associated with the plane with estimates from $1,000 to $7,000. • Can’t just stop and ask questions to a potential intruder. • Sometimes during in climate weather conditions communication with the UAV is broken.
What Type of Technology are they? • They are a disruptive technology. • They have revolutionized the way reconnaissance and intelligence gathering has been done. • They are a technology will receive very little push-back because people realize how effective they are, and can use this to their advantage (Air Force and CIA).
UAVs such as the Predator will one day replace manned fighter jets. • This leaves people at a command center in charge. • Communication is more efficient in a calmer setting compared to being in the air doing dog fights while listening to the C.O. • It will be used more heavily in combat because the lives of soldiers are not being put at risk • Will become a main reconnaissance tool for boarder security for the U.S. and other boarders the U.S. protects. What is the future vision?
UAV's will mitigate the problem of people sneaking in illegal immigrants or harmful items such as bomb and narcotics. • They will do this by keeping constant surveillance over our boarders. • Provides a safer means for the military to conduct air missions and not put soldiers lives at risk. • Enable information to be collected without the knowledge of those being tracked, thus preventing individuals from trying to run away. Will it solve or mitigate problems we may have?
Making us safer • When people realize the fullest potential of a UAV such as the Predator, all agencies of Homeland Security will be more likely to adopt it. • It provides us with a tool to better protect our home front from intruders and people trying to get into the country. • In natural disasters like Katrina, first responders could use the predator to spot individuals trapped over areas we could not normally see and send teams in to save those trapped individuals .
Who is looking at this technology and who is funding it? • The U.S. government is funding much of the development of this technology though it is being created and developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Incorporated. • The Air Force and the CIA are currently employing this technology for information and reconnaissance gathering . • In August 2005, the US Department of Homeland Security / Customs and Border Protection (DHS/CBP) ordered two Predator systems for monitoring of the USA's south-west border.
Is it Contested? • Agencies that might protest the wide use of UAV's is the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration). • They would not want UAV's being in the paths of their jets that they are trying to control. • The only exception is that they may have an altitude law where the UAV may not go above a certain height because it could become a danger to the jets if they crashed into it. • This would create more work for Air Traffic Controllers. • May interfere with peoples privacy rights since they cannot see if they are being watched.
This technology should be leveraged more to help solve problems for our military and Homeland Security agencies such as CBP, FBI, etc. • As time goes on, UAV's will become smaller, faster, fly higher and stream better images. • They should eventually replace fighter jets, and in doing so they will save many American lives. • They should be used where ever we are warring and harnessed to protect our troops. • At home, these should be used to the fullest extent to prevent illegal aliens from entering the country and sneaking in narcotics. • All agencies should adopt this technology because it is the way of the future. Either you keep up with technology, or you get left behind. What should happen…
