In the minds of most people unrelated to aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles are somewhat complicated versions of radio-controlled aircraft models. In a sense, it is. However, the functions of these devices have recently become so diverse that they can no longer be limited to just such a look at them.
The beginning of the drone era
If we talk about automatic flying and space remotely controlled systems, then this topic is not new. Another thing is that in the last decade a certain fashion has arisen on them. At its core, the Soviet shuttle Buran, which made a space flight without a crew and landed safely in the now distant 1988, is also a drone. Photos of the surface of Venus and many scientific data about this planet (1965) are also obtained in automatic and telemetric mode. And moon rovers are quite consistent with the concept of unmanned vehicles. And many other achievements of Soviet science in the space sphere. Where did the mentioned fashion come from? Apparently, it was the result of the experience of the combat use of such equipment, and he was rich.
Initially, unmanned aerial vehicles were most often used either as training targets or as projectiles. This was still in the first third of the 20th century, and this situation remained until the very end of the century (not counting spacecraft). The loss of aviation in the Vietnam War led the Pentagon to think about ways to reduce casualties. The same considerations prompted the development of Israeli-controlled designers of Israeli firms to begin developing land-based aircraft.
UAV classification
At the initial stage of development of this class of aerotechnics, unmanned aerial vehicles were uncontrollable. The technological revolution and the development of software tools gave impetus to the creation of flying robots working according to a given algorithm. In other words, after launch, such a device must fly along a given route at the desired height, record information about the ground situation under the wing on the built-in electronic recording equipment, arrive again at the starting point and land. It is possible to transmit data in real time to the receiving monitor via the radio channel, but during the entire raid, the personnel at the tracking point do not interfere with the control process. With all the advantages of this approach, it has a significant flaw. To create a program that could take into account all possible situations is impossible. Then a third way of solving the managerial function arose - telemetric. The pilot is on the ground, monitors the situation through the built-in cameras, records the necessary information and makes decisions in the same way as the pilot of a conventional aircraft. This method is called remotely piloted. Incidentally, it is also used in toy models with radio control, though quite expensive (they cost hundreds, and sometimes thousands of dollars).
The Israel Defense Forces (Tzahal) gained experience in using the new technology during the 1973 war. Unmanned aerial vehicles were used for operational reconnaissance, but the large size and weight of video equipment of that time greatly limited the capabilities of this tool. Nevertheless, it was in this Middle Eastern country that they first understood the prospects of remotely controlled aircraft, which affected the further successes of Israeli designers.
Amazing variety
The scope was not limited to intelligence. Engineers of the American military-industrial complex went further. In addition to the small-sized ones, they considered the creation of shock robotic systems, and even fighters, to be a logical solution. Of course, these machines must be large in order to carry weapons weighing hundreds of kilograms. The range of sizes expanded in the opposite direction. A drone with a surveillance camera can be disguised as a bird or even an insect, work in this direction is already underway, and the main obstacle to success is the imperfection of modern power sources, which should have provided three-dimensional movement of the sample for several days. In the meantime, "bugs" (in the literal sense) fly over a period of time measured in hours.
When solving peaceful tasks
Not only military, but also peaceful unmanned aerial vehicles proved to be in demand. Their prices are quite high (depending on the configuration and technical capabilities of the UAV, it can cost from one to tens of thousands of dollars), but their economic use is beneficial. The exploration of the meteorological situation, the search for climbers who were injured and lost in the mountains, the assessment of the ice situation, the direction of the spread of fire during forest fires, the movement of lava during volcanic eruptions, and many other tasks have always been carried out by aircraft. Pilots and equipment were at risk when performing dangerous flights, and if we take into account the cost of fuel and the depreciation of helicopters and airplanes, it becomes quite clear the desire to use remotely controlled or robotic aerosystems.
Drones are also often used today to guard borders and control migration. The United States has a long border with Mexico, from where illegal workers are trying to illegally enter the country at best, and at worst smugglers with a load of drugs. Similar problems exist in Russia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and many other states. Invalid assistance in the fight against poaching can also be provided by unmanned aerial vehicles. But their merits, such as low noise, low visibility, small size, are still more attracted to the defense departments of countries around the world.
Properties of unmanned aerial vehicles
Military drones are harder to detect in the sky than conventional planes or helicopters. Firstly, they can be made small, and secondly, all technologies that provide low visibility on the radar screen are also applicable for this tactical tool. But that is not all. If necessary, such an aircraft can have quite serious dimensions. The main advantage of a robotic interceptor is the ability to perform any maneuvers without fear that the pilot will lose consciousness due to huge overloads. It was this circumstance that prompted the leadership of the US Air Force to rely on drones. The United States has invested enormous amounts of money in the development of this type of weapons, commensurate with the GDP of some states. Today it is difficult to judge the results of efforts in the field of fighter aviation, there is very little information about them, from which two conclusions are possible: either the tests are so successful that they should be kept secret, or they are extremely unsuccessful. In this case, the second option is more likely. The Pentagon eagerly talks about its victories, and even usually exaggerates them somewhat.
Unmanned attack aircraft "Predator"
But the focus is on the drone. This type of weaponry was used during the operation against Libya (2011). We used the most common type, Predator, which has quite good characteristics. The ability to carry missiles for firing at ground targets or guided bombs, a high (over 7 thousand m) ceiling compensate for the relatively low speed. Management is carried out from ground stations, and recently even the possibility of remote piloting from bases located in the United States through satellite communication channels has been explored. Sometimes such informational involvement does not always play into the hands of the interests of countries with impressive technological advances. During a reconnaissance flight over Iraq in 2008, one of the "Traitors" supplied information not only to its armed forces, but also to rebel forces. It turned out by chance, after the capture of one of the militants, who had a laptop computer with video recording. To read the video stream, software tools developed in Russia were used.
During the course of their military career, the Traitors suffered losses. They shot them down over Yugoslavia, Iraq and Afghanistan. Several pieces crashed due to piloting errors and technical problems. Currently, the design of this type of UAV is no secret. Anyone can even purchase such unmanned aerial vehicles. Prices depend on the configuration, however, the most modest version of the "toy" will cost a seven-figure dollar amount (about five million).
Drones of all countries
The US leadership is striving for military-technological superiority, believing that the more complex military equipment is, the more effective it is. This is not always the case, but when assessing the potential of a particular technical model, the interests of manufacturing companies should be taken into account. Today, it has become clear to many military analysts that the role of UAVs in a real military situation is great, but it is difficult to name it, even with the greatest stretch. Of course, they help the ground forces, but they cannot fully ensure success, which is indirectly confirmed by the not very victorious results of the US Army campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. Nevertheless, many countries joined the race, the aim of which was to create the most advanced flying robot. The characteristics of drones are different depending on the tasks that they have to solve.
Israel has achieved the greatest success in this area of engineering. Here, of course, the features of the Middle East theater of operations are of importance. The distances are small, intelligence has to work in almost real time. Initially, the high requirements for the technical specifications of unmanned aerial vehicles set the pace for the development of this class of weapons, and currently all countries exposed to the risks of local conflicts are trying to borrow the experience of Israel, purchasing equipment from it or making their own developments. These include Turkey, India, Britain, almost all European NATO countries and, of course, Russia.
The adventures of drones in Russia
It should be sadly stated that a proper assessment of the capabilities of this class of weapons in our country was not received immediately. Most of the impressive achievements of our military-industrial complex are basically based on Soviet developments, which, for all their merits, are doomed, like any other technique, to moral aging. During the leadership of the Ministry of Defense, Serdyukov spent an impressive amount of five billion rubles (about $ 170 million) on Russian drones, but the effect was very modest. According to the minister himself, domestic developments did not go to any comparison with foreign models. However, the presence of imperfect drones is better than their complete absence. Then (2009) it was decided first to purchase in Israel, and then the joint production of these reconnaissance vehicles.
The total amount of the contract with Aeronautics Defense Systems amounted to more than fifty million US dollars (for 12 pieces). The next five UAVs “Orbiter” differed from the previous ones in their expanded configuration, therefore they cost more, 600 thousand for each.
What can be done taking into account the experience of the most successful countries cannot be confused with other tasks solved exclusively by domestic means. Dual-use reconnaissance vehicles manufactured by the joint venture can give only an initial impetus to Russian production. The Tupolev company, which seeks to create a Tu-300 strike unmanned system, took up the matter. There are other developments, the procurement decisions of which are made by the Ministry of Defense on a competitive basis.
The amount of budgetary funds allocated for the program and the technological level of the domestic defense complex allow us to hope that soon Russian drones will become the best in the world. Or, at least, they will not concede anything to their foreign counterparts. Of particular interest are machines designed for electronic warfare.
How to use it?
Control of unmanned aerial vehicles is the same specialty as the regular profession of a pilot. An expensive and complex car can easily be smashed to the ground, making an inept landing. It can be lost as a result of an unsuccessful maneuver or shelling by the enemy. Like a regular plane or helicopter, the drone must be tried to save and take out of the danger zone. The risk, of course, is not the same as in the case of the "live" crew, but it is not worth scattering expensive equipment. Today, in most countries, instructor and training are carried out by experienced pilots who have mastered UAV control. They, as a rule, are not professional educators and computer specialists, so this approach is unlikely to last long. The requirements for a “virtual pilot” differ from those that are presented to a future cadet when enrolling in a flight school. It can be assumed that the competition among applicants for the specialty “UAV operator” will be considerable.
