Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Market – Overview of Vital Industry Drivers

A UAV or drone is an aircraft operated without the presence of a human pilot onboard. Flights of unmanned aerial vehicles are remotely or autonomously controlled by the remote control on the ground. The drones vary in shape, characteristics, functions and configurations. Despite the products being popular amongst the defense forces and civil operations around the world, the unmanned aerial vehicle market is still in its budding stage. Varying applications profile of the drones is expected to create strong growth opportunities for the players in this market. Rising demand from the emerging parts of the world are also expected to provide crucial traction for this industry over the next few years.

Scope of Research in UAV Market

Segmentation

In order to analyze the trends and future growth opportunities, researchers segment the global unmanned aerial vehicle market. This segmentation is performed on the basis of the types of subsystems, vehicle class, funding and their applications. Apart from that, demand in the unmanned aerial vehicle market around the world in terms of different geographic regions is also taken into consideration. The types of classes include strategic, tactical, small and special purpose. The funding segment includes research development test and evaluation (RDT&E), procurements and operations and management (O&M). The subsystems include GCS, data link and software. Basic applications of these vehicles are seen across defense, military, homeland security, and commercial segments.

Drivers & Restraints

According to the researchers, the global unmanned aerial vehicle market is steadily driven by several crucial factors like rising demand and increasing use of the UAVs for law enforcement. Low acquisition and operational costs of these vehicles, enhanced capabilities in the context of fighting terrorism are some of the factors driving this industry. Also, growth in the innovative, non-defense applications in the fields like agriculture and futuristic prospects from the e-commerce industry is expected to drive the industry at steady rate. Growing need for high efficiency and demand from emerging markets like Asia Pacific, Latin America, Africa and Middle East are also set to drive growth in future. Major restraints for the market include declining defense budgets, strict airspace regulations, lack of skilled professionals and track record usage.

However, the global unmanned aerial vehicle market is expected to maintain a steady CAGR of over 7% from 2014 to 2020. At the projected rate, it is anticipated to reach $10,573 million by the end of 2020, which is currently poised at $6,762 million (in 2014). Developing regions like North America and Europe are expected to dominate the industry in terms of market share and demand.