Stratospheric UAVs–mostly airships–that stay airborne flying for months or years will form a new communications and sensing infrastructure, according to the Market Intel Group (www.marketintelgroup.com). Government contracts are funding development of such UAVs at present, but commercial markets will eventually dwarf defense requirements.
“There’s a huge commercial potential, especially in those regions that have not developed alternative ground-based infrastructure, such as Africa, China or India,” said analyst Ed Herlik. He estimated the commercial market potential at $250 billion, versus only $2 billion for defense. The applications include mobile telephony, wireless internet, direct broadcast television and radio, and overhead imagery. Herlik’s latest report for the Market Intel Group examines the potential payloads: “How and where the money will be made,” he said.
