United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2006-04-06 monographic deposited born digital 28 p. GA 1.13:GAO-06-610T https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T P0b002ee18039f703 f:d06610t DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T GAO-06-610T Defense capabilities Defense procurement Interoperability Lessons learned Military aircraft Military operations Military research and development Procurement planning Strategic planning Unmanned aerial vehicles Global Hawk Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems Program Testimony A50977 The current generation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) has been in development for defense applications since the 1980's. As of February 2006, the Department of Defense (DOD) had more than 3,000 unmanned aircraft, about 2,000 of which are supporting ongoing operations in Iraq. DOD's 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review validates the importance of unmanned systems and establishes plans to significantly expand investment in unmanned systems and their use in military operations over the next several years. The Congress has been particularly interested in DOD's approach to determining UAS needs and managing the growing number of UAS programs. This testimony addresses GAO's prior work and preliminary observations on (1) the operational successes and challenges U.S. forces are experiencing with UAS in combat operations, and the extent to which DOD has taken steps to address challenges; (2) DOD's progress in establishing a strategic plan and oversight framework to guide joint and service-specific UAS development efforts and related investment decisions; and (3) our assessment of the Global Hawk and Predator programs' business cases and acquisition strategies and the lessons learned that can be applied to the Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems program. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T.pdf GAO-06-610T https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-06-610T Testimony GAO-06-610T; Unmanned Aircraft Systems: Improved Planning and Acquisition Strategies Can Help Address Operational Challenges; Defense capabilities Defense procurement Interoperability Lessons learned Military aircraft Military operations Military research and development Procurement planning Strategic planning Unmanned aerial vehicles Global Hawk Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems Program Public Law 109-163