Navy Asking Industry for Ideas to Meet Increased Range for UAVs

Rear Adm. Brian Corey, right, shown here during a tour in Point Mugu, California, in 2015. U.S. Navy / Kimberly Brown

ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy’s acquisition official for unmanned aerial systems said he is looking for ideas to meet a new requirement that has come down from regional combatant commanders (COCOMs).

“Now we have a new demand coming from the COCOM for increased range,” said Rear Adm. Brian Corey, program executive officer – Unmanned and Strike Weapons, speaking Sept. 9 at the Unmanned Systems Defense, Protection, Security virtual conference sponsored by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International.

“There’s currently no product line that industry has designed that meets our requirements,” Corey said. “This is where we need industry’s innovative thinking to help us deliver this increased capability in the future and to do it quickly.”

Corey gave no additional details, but range has become a more precious characteristic in an era of great power competition, when standoff at greater ranges has become more crucial for forces in view of more sophisticated Chinese, Russian and Iranian weaponry.