NEWTOWN, Conn.---Allied operations in Afghanistan will have a positive influence on the unmanned air vehicle (UAV) market, with production over the next ten years expected to be worth $7.5 billion, according to Forecast International's "The Market for Reconnaissance Unmanned Air Vehicles."
Unmanned air vehicles have played a starring role in Operation Enduring Freedom. Besides performing reconnaissance and surveillance missions, unmanned air vehicles have fired weapons against hostile ground targets for the first time since the Vietnam War. More valuable than the UAV's, however, are the crucial components that make the systems so effective.
"Although air vehicles, such as Predator and Global Hawk, get most of the media attention, more than half of this market's total value, about $4.5 billion, will be generated by procurement of payloads and ground control stations," said Forecast International missile analyst Larry Dickerson.
The most profitable program over the next 10 years is expected to be Northrop Grumman's Global Hawk long-endurance unmanned air vehicle. "Since the start of Operation Enduring Freedom, the amount of interest in, and the number of missions likely to be attributed to the Global Hawk has increased substantially," said Dickerson. The total value of the Global Hawk program could reach $3 billion through 2011.
Despite UAV successes in the skies over Afghanistan, some supporters worry that the vehicles are being asked to do too much, too quickly, according to the report. Failure to meet rising expectations could easily wipe away all the successes achieved by UAVs over Afghanistan. Operation Enduring Freedom may have helped to boost interest in all kinds of unmanned vehicles - especially airborne systems - but whether this immediate interest will last or slowly dissipate as in the past remains unclear.
Forecast International/DMS, Inc., is a leading provider of Market Intelligence and Analyses in the areas of aerospace, defense, power systems and military electronics. Based in Newtown, CT, USA, Forecast International specializes in long-range industry forecasts and innovative marketing presentations, including regular 10-year forecasts.
