And just how much so these Warton military grade/spec UAVs cost?
Once a real procurement quango is in operation, it would quickly find they would be prohibitively expensive, especially when you add in the crewing requirements, which I think you'll find match what we have now operating real aircraft.
You don't need to go to maplins for the hardware, china based companies can provide jammers cheaper. It is as simple as that :-)
For the purpose of this discussion there are two classes of UAVs. The large that are capable of satellite control and heavy payloads that can remain airborn for hours and require a significant ground infrastructure. BAE has built a fixed wing UAV, the HERTI -OC with a payload of around 150kg and powered by a rotax. Nautalis Institute reports that up to 2006 BAE had invested $100M in its development. Video here.
CCTV in the sky: police plan to use military-style spy drones | UK news | The Guardian
The other type are loosely called micro drones with a payload of a few kilos and so capable of carrying a transmitter, small thermal camera, digital stills camera or TV camera with 10x zoom. The popular models have quad rotors, a flight computer with auto hover, self land using gps and other instruments. Fully equipped with a downlink (1km range) and camera they cost around US$40k. It takes just a day of training to be competent, in this respect they are far easier to learn to operate than a model helicopter.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/E...de/8510370.stm
There is also talk of an airship like the BAE GA22 being used during the Olympics, this also being called a "drone'.
In respect to jammers I'd suggest that the commercial models could be hacked so new code would need to be written and kept confidential. The military manage to achieve this as there are not too many reports of UAVs going haywire.
In the event of loss of control signals or other problems, the microdrones and UAVs shift into fully autonomous mode and land themselves in a predetermined location.
So there are two ends of the spectrum one with low setup cost but not capable yet of being flown beyond 1km from the operator and the other more expensive, long range military style UAV, requiring more expensive infrastructure and a significant change in thinking from CAA about them being flown over congested areas.
To share the cost, Kent police (who have been leading the charge) are looking for partners from other agencies for the long range drone. They have been working with BAE as primary aircraft supplier.
I think we can agree that an autonomous drone patrolling the South coast 24/7 is an efficient and effective use of a drone.
But it is a quantum leap to suggest, as they have, that they be used in numbers, during the Olympics, when there is existing capable and proven technology. From the outside looking in, it looks like the Olympics are being used for gain traction to launch the coastal operation.
A 5O knot orbit in a fixed wing at 2000 feet won't always get you a continuous picture of a suspect in typically narrow UK streets, but hover and slow track and follow capability of a twin engine helicopter will get the job done.
from the web
"The UK Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) published a tender IN September. Soca's efforts are focused on tackling organised gangs involved in drug smuggling, human trafficking, gun crime, money laundering and identity theft. Often described as Britain's FBI, the organisation is led by Sir Ian Andrews, a former senior Ministry of Defence official.
The agency's request for bids is entitled "UK-London: intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance". It proposes the use of both conventional planes and UAVs for a national air patrol service. The document suggests the surveillance contract could be put out to a private company.
Speaking on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers, ACC Allyn Thomas of Kent police confirmed that Staffordshire, Merseyide and Essex were using drones. "It is a cheaper option [than helicopters]," he said, "along with the opportunity to use the drones when cloud base cover makes it impossible for the conventional air support to fly."
Mickjoebill