An ad hoc committee of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will identify, examine, and make recommendations on key considerations to guide the U.S. Coast Guard’s priorities for developing, testing, and deploying unmanned technologies for maritime domain awareness applications. Specific known or anticipated considerations for these new technologies are:
• acquisition, operations, and maintenance costs;
• service life, reliability, and versatility;
• readiness for testing and/or deployment;
• infrastructure requirements for beyond line of sight control of remotely controlled systems and autonomous system data transmission/collection/analysis/storage;
• ability to aid the Coast Guard in pursuing its missions at lower cost and deploying its vessels, aircraft, equipment, and personnel more efficiently and effectively;
• ability to create new mission related capabilities, such as by increasing persistence of effort and expanding the scope and range of maritime domain awareness; and,
• operational and regulatory challenges when used in domestic and international airspace and waters.
The study committee shall take into account all Coast Guard missions that require maritime domain awareness, but give particular attention to the application of unmanned technologies for asset intensive missions--such as for intelligence gathering, surveillance, and reconnaissance to support law enforcement (e.g., drug-interdiction, fisheries enforcement, and migrant-interdiction), search and rescue, and oil spill response--where unmanned technologies can increase the persistence and scope of maritime domain awareness and aid in the efficient and effective use of current manned assets. The committee will consider, and make recommendations as appropriate, on adjustments that may be needed to Coast Guard policies, procedures, and protocols to incorporate unmanned technologies.