Unmanned Aerial vehicle, also known as UAVs are one of the major technological advancements in modern history. They are commonly known as drones. In my web site, I have described many technological aspects and technological approaches for building an UAV. So, Today’s article, we are going to talk about the history of UAV technology.
Introduction:
Since the beginning of mankind, humans needed one thing; ability to fly. Throughout the history, various attempts were made. Most famously Leonardo Davinci in 15th century did design a version of helicopter, but could not complete the prototype due to technical limitations at the time.
Hot Air Balloons
First idea of modern drone technology comes from hot air balloons. These balloons were made. These balloons were used to attack enemies just like a modern military UAV. During 19th century, these balloons were widely used. during 1849, Austrian artillery lieutenant ‘Franz von Uchatius’ invented the balloon bomb. Field Marshall ‘von Radetsky’ used the balloons to attack Venice, but they were mostly ineffective.
Aircrafts development
In 1858, the first ever aerial photograph was taken by Gasper Felix Tournachon from a Hot air balloon Prance. Then Famous Alfred Nobel, the inventor of Dynamite and Founder of Nobel prize, did take the first ever photograph by a Unmanned system by using a rocket and attaching camera into it. Then the greatest engineering inventor of 20th century, Great Nikola Tesla demonstrated the first ever radio-controlled vehicle(A radio-controlled boat) in 1898.
In 1903, following the Wright brothers’ inaugural flight, the pace of advancements in aviation quickened, leading to the creation of the first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. This era marked the advent of flying bombs, which refer to either manned or unmanned aerial vehicles or aircraft equipped with a significant explosive payload, serving as a forerunner to modern cruise missiles.
Aircrafts without pilots actually arrived during world war-1. The Hewitt Sperry Automated Airplane, created by Elmer Sperry from the Sperry Gyroscope company, was a preliminary model of modern aerial torpedoes. The American military quickly converted Standard E-1 planes into unmanned aerial vehicles. One of these, named the Larynx, was a small monoplane capable of flying autonomously after being launched from a naval vessel. Other automated aircraft, designed by the US and British forces, soon came into existence.
The first airplane to be mass-produced was conceived by Reginald Denny. He was a successful actor from Hollywood who followed his passion for remote-controlled drones and established Reginald Denny Industries. The company created the radio-controlled plane, which he improved for the U.S. military during World War II. The American military tested these remote-controlled drones and developed several types of aerial torpedoes. They utilized these drones as target vehicles during the Cold War. Moreover, these drones were capable of gathering radioactive data as well.
Evolution of Quadcopters.
Quadcopters were among the earliest vehicles designed for vertical take-off and landing (VTOL). In the past, helicopters utilized tail rotors to offset the torque produced by a single main rotor, which proved to be inefficient and wasteful. To address the challenges faced by helicopter pilots during vertical flights, engineers created quadcopters. The first quadcopter was the Omnichen-2, invented by ‘Etienne Omnichen’ in 1920. This aircraft completed 1,000 successful flights and covered a documented distance of 360 meters (1,181.1 feet). The Convertawings Model A quadcopter, created by Dr. George E Bothezat, was introduced in 1956. It was the first to utilize propulsion, or the forward thrust of a propeller, to manage an aircraft’s roll, pitch, and yaw. The Curtis Wright V27, developed by the Curtis Wright Company, came next in 1958.
Cold War Era
Following the conclusion of World War II, research on UAVs progressed, bolstered by significant advancements in automated systems. During the 1950s, as aircraft and missiles began to exceed the speed of sound, air defense units required new tools to replicate such targets. Military officials aimed to create pilotless target aircraft capable of supersonic flight. In 1953, the Radioplane division of Northrop initiated work on the AQM-35 supersonic pilotless target aircraft, which executed its maiden flight in 1956. It achieved speeds reaching Mach 1.55. Its primary objective was to assist in the training of air defense missile units against supersonic aircraft. Although it could be launched from the ground, it was most frequently deployed from an airplane, which also provided control. A total of 25 units were constructed, but the program was eventually discontinued because the UAV’s speed outpaced the capacity of air defence systems to track and engage it.
The major fear of cold was a nuclear war. Strategic reconnaissance became vital. The U-2 spy plane, created by a US government commission in the early 1950s, emerged as the emblem of this period. However, on May 1, 1960, Soviet air defense shot down a U-2 over Soviet territory. This event highlighted that high altitude does not guarantee sufficient protection, and the program’s significant expenses, along with the media uproar that followed the downing, illustrated the drawbacks of such aircraft. Considering these elements, it is understandable that leaders began to explore unmanned reconnaissance systems capable of capturing high-quality images deep within enemy.In 1960, the United States Air Force commissioned Ryan Aeronautical to transform the Ryan Model 147 PTAs into unmanned reconnaissance drones. This new UAV was named “Lightning Bug” and was given the codename BQM-34 Firebee. [Figure 4] This remotely piloted vehicle could be launched using a catapult from either land or maritime platforms.
During the Vietnam War, these models executed over 3,400 sorties within the 100th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing. Since fighter aircraft frequently fell victim to air defense missiles, finding and neutralizing them became a top priority. The US primarily employed the Firebees for this task. The Vietnamese SA-2 air defense missiles operated via radio control, allowing for easy detection of their emitted signals. The drone transmitted its reconnaissance data to an RB-47 aircraft, where the missiles’ locations were determined based on that information. Additionally, the UAV was designed with an active radar warning receiver, enhancing its capability for survival.
Developments in 21st century
In our current century, stealth capabilities in fighter aircraft have become a fundamental necessity, alongside the integration of onboard systems into a singular complex unit. This concept brings us closer to the topic of information warfare, which aims to attain information superiority over adversaries. Within the realm of information warfare, there is a significant demand for continuous information for both soldiers and command posts. To satisfy this requirement, UAVs are extensively utilized and play a crucial role in information flow. Their effectiveness has led to an increasing number of deployments. While their primary function was initially to gather intelligence, they are now also capable of conducting air interdiction and air suppression missions. The MQ-9 Reaper UAV from the United States exemplifies the airstrike capability.
The Reaper serves as the advanced version of the Predator, which made its inaugural flight in 2001. It is the first hunter-killer UAV engineered for extended endurance and high-altitude intelligence gathering. Nevertheless, its primary function is to target ground positions. For this role, it can be equipped with a variety of munitions, including the Hellfire air-to-ground missile, GBU-12 laser guided bomb, or GBU-38 satellite-guided JDAM. In addition to conducting airstrikes, it is capable of performing strategic aerial surveillance due to its impressive endurance of 14 to 42 hours. It conducted its initial mission in Afghanistan in 2007, and has since participated in operations in Libya and Mali. Both the Predator and Reaper aircraft boast the highest operational readiness rates among all aircraft within the US Department of Defence, often achieving a mission availability rate of over 99%.
The future of drone technology is poised to transform numerous industries, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence, robotics, materials science, and wireless communication. Most importantly with the rapid advancements of Artificial intelligence is continuously experimenting on fully autonomous intelligent UAVs that will not require human intervention to operate.