Feasibility analysis of UAV technology to improve tactical surveillance in South Korea's rear area operations

Abstract

This thesis examines the feasibility of introducing battalion-level unmanned aerial vehicles as a countermeasure to solve the problems in the Korean rear area operations caused by the Republic of Korea's military structure reform. This feasibility analysis allows the Republic of Korea to determine the optimum required operational capability of the unmanned aerial vehicles to support Korean rear area operations. We use Map Aware Non-Uniform Automata, an agent-based simulation software platform for computational experiments. The study models a scenario involving North Korea's provocation against a terminal high-altitude area defense battery and measures the unit's ability to detect infiltrators. The deployment of Remoeye-002Bs to rear area forces results in significant improvements on rear area operations. However, its capabilities are insufficient to support Korean rear area operations. Through further experimentations and analyses, we were able to find the optimum characteristics of an improved unmanned aerial vehicle that can cost-effectively achieve the unit's operational goals.