The Market for UAV Reconnaissance Systems - Forecast International

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Page 6 Watchkeeper under serious pressure, London will need foreign money to push Mantis forward. Potential interest in Mantis is coming from India, as well as Australia, Canada, and elsewhere. British newspapers speculated in late 2009 that London would soon kill the Mantis program as part of a defense austerity plan. The British Ministry of Defence is questioning the capabilities of this UAV and is considering alternatives. Taranis. Yet another British UAV program is Taranis. This is a demonstrator program. The Taranis air vehicle will be capable of delivering weapons on a battlefield and will operate at a high level of autonomy. The British government announced the Taranis contract award to BAE Systems in December 2006. This Unmanned Vehicles Forecast contract is worth GBP124 million. Taranis is a four-year project (2007 to 2010). Technical Data Length 11.35 m Height 3.98 Wingspan 9.94 m Weight, Takeoff 8,000 kg Engine Adour 951 The Taranis air vehicle has a delta-wing shape and tricycle-type landing gear. Assembly of the first demonstrator began in September 2007 and ground testing began in early 2009. Test flights are to take place in 2010. The Taranis has internal weapons bays. The other members of this team are Rolls-Royce, QinetiQ, and Smiths Aerospace. Related News Watchkeeper UAV Runs into More Delays – More problems are hitting the United Kingdom's Watchkeeper unmanned air vehicle program. This UAV is aimed at gathering intelligence for the Royal Artillery, but technical problems will delay its service entry, again. The UAV was to arrive in February, eight months later than originally specified by the contract. Now, the Watchkeeper UAV will not arrive until near the end of 2011. (The Register, 3/11) WATCHKEEPER Makes First U.K. Flight – The Watchkeeper unmanned air system flew for the first time in the U.K. on April 14, Thales UK announced. Watchkeeper took off from dedicated facilities at Parc Aberporth in West Wales for a 20-minute flight. The Parc Aberporth facilities, managed by QinetiQ through the West Wales UAV Center, are the premier test facilities for UAVs in the U.K. The flight marks the first milestone in a long-term program to demonstrate that the Watchkeeper system meets the safety and airworthiness criteria required to fly UAVs initially on ranges and segregated airspace in the United Kingdom. The Watchkeeper system's capabilities will enable commanders to detect and track targets for many hours without the need to deploy troops into potentially sensitive or dangerous areas. The system is capable of rapid deployment and operations anywhere in the world and will support the information requirements of all three services. (Thales, 4/10) Market Intelligence Service Subscribers: For additional news, go to the on-line E-Market Alert page located in the Intelligence Center at www.forecastinternational.com and click on the links to the products you subscribe to. Funding The British program to acquire unmanned air vehicles avoided the budget axe for now. The British government is reducing defense spending by 8 percent over the next four years and cut the strength of its armed forces by 10 percent. The British government had been considering a 10-20 percent cut. One report said the British Army will see the number of Watchkeeper UAVs in service increase. Both the British and American militaries use UAVs in Afghanistan to perform intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions. The United Kingdom uses Hermes 450 and leased Reaper UAVs. Once, the Watchkeeper development and production contract was worth GBP1 billion ($1.78 billion) to GBP3 billion. The IOC Watchkeeper regiment will deploy 12 WK 450 UAVs (a regular regiment will have 16). The regiment will operate four batteries, each supporting a brigade and two battlegroup field headquarters. An entire system is deployable on a single C-130 aircraft and can be ready for operation in 24 hours. July 2011
Unmanned Vehicles Forecast Page 7 Watchkeeper British newspaper reports in late 2007 said the U.K. Ministry of Defence planned to procure 54 Watchkeeper unmanned aircraft. The MoD had been reluctant to reveal the number of air vehicles it would acquire. Along with these air vehicles, the MoD will acquire 13 ground control stations (GCS). In 2009, the British MoD delayed the Watchkeeper program. The first Watchkeeper platform was to arrive in October 2010 before entering service a few months later. Additional delays mean the first Watchkeeper will not enter service until late this year (2011). British Defense Budget Figures FY09 FY09 FY10 FY10 FY11 FY11 FY12 FY12 QTY AMT QTY AMT QTY AMT QTY AMT U.S. dollars - 55.29 - 56.40 - 53.02 - 48.52 British Pounds - 35.34 - 36.80 - 34.60 - 31.66 All values are in billions. Contracts/Orders & Options On Oct 24, 2010, the U.K. Ministry of Defence awarded UAS Tactical Systems Ltd (U-TacS) an 18-month extension to its current contract to supply the British military in Afghanistan with ISTAR support services. Under this contract, worth $70 million, the contractor will provide and support Hermes 450 UAV systems, training and maintenance, logistics support, and management services. In Apr 2010, the U.K. Ministry of Defence awarded Thales UK an initial three-year support contract for the Watchkeeper UAS program, for which Thales UK is also prime systems integrator. Specifically, Thales will provide contractor logistics support, providing spares and repairs, technical support, and use of the Watchkeeper training facility. Thales will deliver this service with the support of its key partners and supply chain, established during the Watchkeeper development and production program. This contract covers the entire Watchkeeper system, comprising over 160 entities (including unmanned air vehicles, ground control stations, and support vehicles), and includes operator/user training. It is the first step in Thales UK's provision of cost-effective, through-life support to Watchkeeper. The Watchkeeper Service Management Team will be based in the U.K., with joint MoD/Thales service delivery and training teams based in Abbey Wood, Bristol, Larkhill, and Salisbury, assisted by service support organizations at Thales' facilities in both Leicester and Crawley. On Dec 10, 2007, the U.K. MoD awarded two contracts related to its Watchkeeper program. QinetiQ received a GBP5 million contract to perform flight testing and ground base work. ABSL Power Solutions Ltd will provide the emergency backup battery for the Watchkeeper air vehicle. In Jun 2007, Elbit Systems Ltd announced that Thales UK had awarded UAV Tactical Systems Ltd (U-TacS) a contract worth approximately $110 million. This contract calls for the provision of an urgent ISTAR support capability for the U.K. armed forces. The contract includes the provision of Hermes 450 UAV systems, as well as training of the U.K. MoD staff in use and maintenance of the system, and the provision of contractor logistics support and program management services. Work will be managed from the U-TacS facility in Leicester, U.K. U-TacS also provides the core UAV systems for the Thales UK Watchkeeper UAV system. On May 2, 2007, the U.K. MoD awarded Hagglunds a contract for 21 BvS10 Viking all-terrain armored vehicles. These vehicles will be used to transport equipment for the British Army's Watchkeeper UAS. The value of this contract was not disclosed. In Mar 2007, Thales UK and Elbit Systems were in negotiations to meet a British Army urgent operational requirement (UOR) for tactical unmanned air vehicles (TUAVs). The contract is worth GBP50 million. The British Army will receive the Hermes 450 UAV. In Jan 2007, Thales UK awarded a contract of undisclosed value to Athena Technologies Inc to supply its Guidestar integrated INS/GPS and air data sensor suite for the Watchkeeper system. ©2011 July 2011
Page 1: The Market for UAV Reconnaissance S
Page 5: Product Code F662 The Market for UA
Page 9 and 10: Unmanned Vehicles Forecast Watchkee
Page 11 and 12: Unmanned Vehicles Forecast Page 3 W
Page 13: Unmanned Vehicles Forecast Page 5 W
Page 17: Unmanned Vehicles Forecast Page 9 W
Page 20: WORLDWIDE SALES OFFICES HEADQUARTER

The Market for UAV Reconnaissance Systems - Forecast International

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?