Problem Statement: Fast Engines
Published 30 September 2024
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1. Problem statement
What UAS propulsion systems are you currently considering and developing and for what markets? How are you ensuring that new systems are highly reliable, simple, and low cost? What are you doing to ensure a sustainable and responsive supply chain?
The last 5 years has demonstrated the capability and ubiquity of diverse, including smaller and low cost Uncrewed Air Systems (UAS) in modern conflict. UAS are supporting a wide spectrum of military tasks, and they will likely continue to proliferate, creating a critical dependency on efficient, affordable and reliable propulsion systems for UAS up to 1000kg take-off weight.
At the lower end of the mass range (<100kg) UK Defence is currently reliant on battery/electric, and either small reciprocating or gas turbine systems originally designed for model aircraft use, which may lack the efficiency needed to deliver the desired range-payload-endurance performance and/or the needed reliability. The most suitable small gas turbine engines are often sourced from offshore suppliers and the supply chain and production capability may be limited by the scale of the originally intended market.
At the higher end of the mass range (>100kg), the available propulsion systems may be expensive, initially designed for crewed aircraft (e.g. APUs or small rotorcraft engines) or high-end military capabilities, and for extended lifetimes, often requiring a significant maintenance burden.
Future UAS propulsion systems will require different trade-offs compared to their more conventional counterparts. For example, some UAS are being designed for very low hour, single-use, lifetimes, but nonetheless require efficient propulsion systems. These propulsion systems must be optimised for low-cost and low life. They must remain very reliable and require very simple or no maintenance—they will be operated from a battlefield, without the time or ability to carry out the complex servicing tasks of a conventional aircraft propulsion system. They must be simple to prepare and ideally be multi-fuel to simplify the logistics of their operation and must be efficient.
The supply chain supporting these new systems will need to be resilient, sustainable, and scalable. There may be a requirement for 100s or 1000s of systems, potentially annually, and the supply chain must be capable of responding quickly to surges in demand. The supply chain must have the ability to rapidly respond to changing needs, exploiting new and emerging technologies and optimisations, to meet changing capability needs.
Which areas and technologies should the UK invest in to become a world leader in the design, manufacture and testing of highly capable, yet affordable, UAS propulsion solutions? How can Defence best balance the capability trade-offs? What does industry believe is the right approach to best deliver effective capability across the 300N to 3000N thrust ranges? How does Defence best work with industry to harness existing UK propulsion system expertise into lower cost, highly reliable and effective systems? How do we open up the market to become better partners with our allies? with How does Defence best work with industry to establish and harness existing product developments, and the R&D of new technologies, methods, skills and production and testing capabilities to meet the Defence need?