Особливості застосування стратегічної безпілотної розвідувальної авіації у воєнних конфліктах ХХI століття

Abstract

A wide range and variety of reconnaissance and observation tasks, which were solved using strategic unmanned reconnaissance aircraft in military conflicts of the twentieth century, due to the need to update the features, conditions and problematic issues of its application.The purpose of the article. Systematize the features, conditions and problematic issues of the use of strategic unmanned reconnaissance aircraft in military conflicts of the 21st century.An analysis of the results of the hostilities inIraqin 1991 showed the need for the use of reconnaissance UAVs of extended stays in the air with a range of about 1,000 km and more.The creation and use of strategic-level unmanned vehicles was not relevant for all participants in military conflicts. So, if for the Israeli army, whose intelligence facilities were located mainly in the operational-tactical depth of up to400 km, this problem was irrelevant. For the US defense department, the potential reconnaissance facilities of which were located in overseas theaters of war, the question of the availability of strategic UAVs with the ability to control them from the mainland became after 1991 one of the top priorities.Afghanistanhas become the first region of use for the Global Hawk American UAV. Unlike the UAV Predator, the Global Hawk was a purely high-altitude strategic reconnaissance aircraft operating at high altitude to nearly20 km.The main difficulties of using Global Hawk, as it was later established, were to organize the management of these devices. So, to ensure the typical forAfghanistancombat operations of the Global Hawk UAV, it was necessary to have three satellite communication lines.Strategic reconnaissance UAVs has proved that in the difficult conditions of modern military conflicts, they perform more efficiently than manned aircraft to accomplish reconnaissance tasks to perform a number of tasks.Further research should be carried out in such topical areas: increasing the survivability of UAVs, developing approaches to using strategic UAVs in various combat conditions, improving the training system for crews of strategic UAVs, reducing the visibility of UAVs for anti-aircraft destruction of the enemy, and the like.