Aviation Artificial Intelligence: How Will it Fare in the Multi-Domain Environment? Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Drones, Piloted Aircraft Risks, Autonomous Aircraft Benefits, Human - AI Teaming

This unique report has been professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction. As the Army prepares itself to fight in the Multi-Domain Battle environment, it must assume that enemies will contest every domain and units will operate in more austere conditions, both physically and informationally. Increased sensor capabilities, proliferated and dispersed air defense systems, and contested electromagnetic spectrums challenge the air domain and severely restrict the freedom of action to which the United States has become accustomed. As the Army invests in research initiatives to mitigate the threats posed by peer competitors and develop technologies that return a marked advantage for the joint forces, Artificial Intelligence and increasing autonomy offer significant possibilities. Simultaneously, however, increasing sensor capabilities threaten remotely piloted and autonomous systems and their significant electromagnetic emissions. With aviation assets operating across multiple areas of operations within the theater, it is critical that they possess the appropriate technologies and effects to mitigate threat capabilities and increase their survivability.

This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.

1. Introduction * 2. Literature Review: Why Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence? * 3. Defining the Future Environment * 4. Methodology * 5. Current Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Vulnerabilities * 6. Autonomous Aircraft Untethered * 7. Inherent Risks of Piloted Aircraft * 8. Operational Benefits of Autonomous Aircraft * 9. Human and AI Teaming * 10. Framing the Future Scenario * 11. Multi-Domain Battle's Effect on Current UAVs * 12. Multi-Domain Battle's Effect on Autonomous Aircraft * 13. Multi-Domain Battle's Effect on Human/AI Teaming * 14. Recommendations and Conclusion

To be any more efficient than a normal vehicle, autonomous vehicles must possess a certain degree of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Having vehicles that perform their intended functions with little or no guidance from a human controller is highly desirable for any battlefield commander. A system that can execute a set of pre-determined tasks by itself frees a human from the need to control it, and potentially removes that human from significant risk. The potential benefits of Artificial Intelligence extend beyond autonomous operations, including rapid calculations and decision aiding, and management of large amounts of information. The inclusion of Artificial Intelligence and autonomy into the aviation field is arguably not new but has a profound impact, nonetheless. Aircraft avionics and flight control systems have long included various forms of autopilot or flight control coupling that allows the flight computer to manipulate the control surfaces and thereby control the aircraft. Likewise, onboard flight management systems assist pilots in making calculations to determine appropriate flight times, speeds, and distances. Emerging technologies, however, are introducing capabilities that require significantly smaller amounts of pilot or controller input. Department of Defense (DoD) initiatives in multiple services are testing autonomous aircraft for resupply and sustainment missions. The Lockheed-Martin corporation, working with the U.S. Marine Corps, conducted extended field-testing of a semi-autonomous Kaman K-MAX utility helicopter in Afghanistan, opening the door to many other potential applications for unmanned rotary-wing aircraft.

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