Director's Forecast

Near TermLonger Term
During the next year or so, I expext to see significant progress in the following key areas: We will implement our strategic plans to:

  • Integration of Tactical UAVs into the Force Structure.
    Hunter     will be back on track with an integrated master schedule, reasonable performance milestones, a heathier contractural relationship with industry, and a renewed sense of confidence that this key program will meet its objectives. The JCS-directed Fall-1995 demonstration with the Predator will enable operational users to evaluate oth systems and how they complement each other's capabilities and utility.

  • Endurance UAV Deployments and Operations:
    • Predator will complete its JCS-directed deployment to Bosnia under European Command. It will also provide a demon-stration for the U.S. Customs Service, per Congressional direction. Atlantic Command's Detach-ment 2 personnel will complete Predator operational training and prepare it for full employment.
    • DarkStar will perfom its first flight and begin testing.
    • CONV HAE UAV will continue Phase II development.

  • Payloads. We will continue to develop and integrate advanced payloads for all our UAVs. For Predator, we will add a SAR and Ku-band data link during FY95-96, and pursue SIGINT, hyperspectral imaging (HSI), wideband SAR, communications relay and a laser designator thereafter. Equivalent pay-loads will be included in the HAE UAV platforms from the start, while Hunter growth payloads are being planned now for post-FY01.

  • Force Mix. We will continue to work with the JROC, the Services and other agencies to refine UAV force mixes. We will expand our analytical and M&S capabilities to support system-level trades using realistic operational scenarios.

  • Endurance UAV Production. We will work with the Services to define production requirements for all endurance UAVs.

  • Establish the technical architecture, migration options and investment strategy by which to allocate airborne reconnais-sance resources. Implement our near-term trade studies to achieve a balanced manned-unmanned force.

  • Guide Service investments and leverage our own funds to sus-tain UAV development and evaluation by warfighters.

  • Work with the Services to refine information processing and dis-semination for our endurance UAVs.

  • Use our $25-30 million annual Reconnaissance Technology budget to fund key platform, sensor, information processing and communications technologies, and integrate them on UAVs.

  • Combine both endurance and tactical UAV/payload perform-ance and evolving infrastruc-ture support to improve intelligence collection management and shorten sensor-to-shooter time-cycles.

  • Continue to meet our chartered responsibilities to support the warfighter.