Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2011-2036 - Defense ...

Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2011-2036
balanced/affordable capabilities-based Service program objective memorandum (POM). The
POM position for the capability to meet a given requirement is reviewed by OSD and the final
position becomes the President’s Budget.
The Joint Capability Areas (JCAs) 2
are currently the preferred method the Department of
Defense uses for reviewing and managing capabilities. The JCA framework provides the
structure around which capabilities and capability gaps can be aligned across the Department and
across the various portfolios to correlate similar needs, leverage effective solutions, and
synchronize related activities. Also, various frameworks, such as the Universal Joint Task List
(UJTL), are readily available to aid in identifying and organizing the tasks, conditions and
required capabilities.
3.2 Unmanned Systems Applied to Joint Capability Areas
Mapping current and projected unmanned systems against the JCAs provides a sense of the
Product Line Portfolio of unmanned systems and how it currently, and could in the future,
contribute to the missions of the Department. Each JCA represents a collection of related
missions and tasks that are typically conducted to bring about the desired effects associated with
that capability. Nine Tier One JCAs are defined, and assessments identified that unmanned
systems have the potential to be key contributors for Battlespace Awareness, Force Application,
Protection, Logistics, and Building Partnerships. Although assessments have not yet been
completed for the Force Support and Net Centric capability areas, missions and tasks in those
JCAs receive significant support from unmanned systems as well.
Current technology and future advancements can and will enable single platforms to perform a
variety of missions across multiple capability areas. This represents an opportunity for the
Department to achieve a greater return on investment. Furthermore, the projections show that there
will be opportunities for joint systems to conduct missions for each of the Services, just as there
will be situations in which domain conditions or Service missions will dictate unique solutions.
Detailed descriptions of each of the systems identified for the capability areas, including specific
tasks, performance attributes and integrated technologies can be found at the Unmanned Warfare
Information Repository site: https://extranet.acq.osd.mil/uwir/. Below are the descriptions for
the most relevant JCA.
3.2.1 Battlespace Awareness (BA)
Battlespace Awareness is a capability area in which unmanned systems in all domains have the
ability to significantly contribute well into the future to conduct ISR and environment collection
related tasks. To achieve this, unmanned systems development and fielding must include the
Tasking, Production, Exploitation, and Dissemination (TPED) processes required to translate vast
quantities of sensor data into a shared understanding of the environment. There are many ongoing
efforts to streamline TPED processing. Applications in this JCA range from tasks such as aerial
and urban reconnaissance, which is performed today by Predators, Reapers and Global Hawks in
the air and by PackBots and Talons on the ground, to tasks such as Expeditionary Runway
Evaluation, Nuclear Forensics, and Special Reconnaissance. In the future, technology will enable
2 http://www.dtic.mil/futurejointwarfare
16