2024/2025 World Civil Unmanned Aerial Systems - Market Profile & Forecast

Table of Contents

Executive Overview

The Civil UAS Market Outlook

• Summary
• Study Parameters
• Forecast Assumptions
• Russo-Ukrainian War Shows Value of UAS, but Hits Sales
• Covid-19 Pandemic and the Civil UAS Market

Evolving Civil Market

• The Ice Cracks: Frozen US Market Shows Signs of Thaw
• European Unified Regulations Take Effect
• China is Flexing Its Muscles in Agriculture, Delivery and Other Commercial UAS
• Other Asia-Pacific Nations Seek to Stake Out Their Own Positions
• Major Technology Companies Spurred UAS Development
• Civil Government Market Growth Strong in Europe and United States

Commercial Market Size and Timing

• Delivery
• Enterprise Markets Emerge in Construction, Energy, Insurance
• General Photography
• Precision Agriculture
• Communications

Consumer Drone Market Growth Flagging

Uncertainties about Civil/Commercial Market Growth

Forecast Summaries

Development of the Civil/Commercial UAS Industry

An Industry Matures

• Covid-19 Pandemic Intensified Pressures to Consolidate
• Technology Leaders Positioned Themselves for Industry Growth
• Defense/Aerospace Companies Seeking Civil/Commercial UAS Market Position
• Hybrid Hardware/Software/Data Analysis Market Matures
• The Service Industry Draws Multinationals and Small Players
• Rapid Growth but Profits Lag During Ramp-Up
• Moving Up the Value Chain

Mergers and Acquisitions

• Acquisitions Driven by Multiple Factors
• Solar-Powered Technology Shines; Business Case Not Very Sunny

US Civil Government Markets

US Federal Government Departments Fall Into One Of Four Categories:

FAA Begins Opening National Airspace

• Pace of Incremental Approach Picks Up
• Critical Elements for Opening National Airspace
• Remote Identification Moving Ahead
• Unmanned Traffic Management
• FAA Went Beyond
• Integration Pilot Program
• The Previous Rule on Small UAS
• Former Section 333 Approval Process
• Emergence of the Initial US Commercial Market
• Earlier FAA Movement in Allowing US Commercial UAS Operations
• NASA Flight Testing of Large UAS
• NASA Flight Testing of Medium UAS

US Federal Government Use Cases

• Department of Homeland Security
• Overview
• Department of Homeland Security: Customs & Border Protection
• Customs & Border Protection UAS Background
• Department of Homeland Security: Coast Guard
• Department of State
• Overview
• Department of Justice
• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Planned Buildup Slowed by Information Security Concerns
• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on the Sidelines
• Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Ended Its Program
• US Marshals Service
• Department of Justice Assistance to Local Law Enforcement
• US Department of the Interior
• Temporary Cessation of Drone Operations Due to Chinese Content
• Leading Federal Government UAS Use
• Background on Fleet Development
• Department of Interior: US Geological Survey
• Department of Interior: Bureau of Land Management
• Department of Interior: Forestry Applications
• US Department of Agriculture
• Forest Service
• US Department of Commerce
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
• National Institute of Standards
• Other Federal Government UAV Users
• NASA Research UAVs
• National Transportation Safety Board
• National Science Foundation
• Other Federal Agencies

State and Local Government

• State and Local Law Enforcement and Public Safety

US Civil Government Market Forecast

International Civil Government Markets

European Union Agencies & Programs

• New Regulations to Affect All UAS Operators
• European Border and Coast Guard
• How We Got Here: Frontex
• How We Got Here: European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA)
• How We Got Here: European Fisheries Control Agency

European Country Developments

• Belgium
• Croatia
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Italy
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Nepal
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Russian Federation
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom

European Civil Government Forecast

Rest of the World

• Overview

United Nations & Other Multinational Institutions

• United Nations Peacekeeping
• International Organization for Migration
• World Food Program
• UNICEF
• United Nations Development Programme
• International Atomic Energy Agency
• World Bank

Rest of the World Country Developments

• Australia
• Botswana
• Brazil
• Canada
• Chile
• China
• Colombia
• Gambia
• Ghana
• Guyana
• India
• Indonesia
• Japan
• Kenya
• Malawi
• Mexico
• New Zealand
• Panama
• Peru
• Samoa
• Scotland
• Sierra Leone
• Singapore
• South Africa
• Sri Lanka
• Taiwan
• Tanzania
• Thailand
• Uganda
• United Arab Emirates
• Uzbekistan

Rest of the World Civil Government Forecast

Commercial/Consumer Markets

Agriculture

• Agricultural UAS Applications
• Asia Solidifying, US Still Anticipating
• UAS Spraying No Longer Exclusively an Asia-Pacific Market
• Emergence of the UAS Agricultural Imagery and Analytics Market
• Forecast

Delivery

• Many Trials Underway
• Near Term Delivery Dominated by Medicines, Remote Areas, Ships
• Current Regulations Restrain Delivery
• FAA Integration Program Addressed US Delivery Obstacles
• Medium- and Longer-Term Promise for Premium and Larger Package Deliveries
• Pandemic Sped Deployment of Delivery Drones
• China's Manufacturers and Retailers Forging Ahead Quickly
• Delivery Work Picking up in Japan, Singapore, and Southeast Asia
• International Progress Toward Other Deliveries
• Challenging Economics of Low Value Drone Deliveries
• Forecast

Construction

• State of Adoption
• Potential Applications
• Largest Construction Contractors Worldwide Embracing UAS
• Market Soars with Growing Alliances
• Forecast

Energy (Oil & Gas/Utilities)

• The Rush into Wind and Solar Creates UAS Opportunities
• Traditional Energy: Oil and Gas and Utilities
• Oil and Gas Majors Pursuing Diverse Strategies on Drone Operations
• Growing Menu of Service Offerings Spurring Oil and Gas Inspection Growth
• Oil and Gas Pipeline Market Requirements
• Pipeline Patrol: A Tale of Two Markets
• Potential UAS Applications for Utilities
• Transmission Line Inspections in United States
• Power Line Inspections in Europe and Asia
• Forecast

Communications

• A Market with Promise Already Experiencing Shakeout
• Solar HAPS Pushes Beyond Production
• Alphabet's Past Approach
• Facebook's Turnabout on Developing Its Own System
• Other Countries Developing HAPS Systems
• Solar UAS Operating Procedure for the Internet
• Use of Smaller UAS for Inspecting Communications Infrastructure
• Emergency Communications & Other Applications for Small UAS
• Forecast

Insurance

• Insurance Market Outlook
• Insurance Companies Emerge as an Early Adopter
• A Cautionary Note
• International Insurance UAS Outlook
• Forecast

Other Industrial Inspection

• Aircraft Inspection Expands Globally
• Mining the Mining Market
• Leading Mining Companies Finding Success with Drones
• Mining a Focus Market for Many Leading New UAS Companies
• Mining Outlook
• Europe's Early Railway Adopters
• FAA Pathfinder Adoption Key for Railway Adoption
• Railway Outlook

Entertainment

• Drone Shows Catching on Around the World
• Forecast

General Photography

• Low Barriers to Entry Foster Early Development
• Real Estate, News Gathering & Cinematography
• Forecast

Consumer Drones

• Consumer Market Falters
• Shifting Markets
• Forecast

Civil UAS Company Profiles

• Aerialtronics
• Aerodyne Group
• AeroVironment Inc.
• AgEagle Aerial Systems
• Airbus Defense & Space (formerly European Defense and Space Co.)

Airobotics

• Amazon.Com, Inc.
• Altametris
• AT&T
• Aurora Flight Sciences (Boeing)
• BAE Systems
• Bell Helicopter Textron Inc.
• The Boeing Co.
• CAE Inc.
• CACI International Inc.
• China Aerospace Science & Industry Corporation Limited (CASIC)
• Chinese Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics
• Clobotics
• CyberHawk Innovations Ltd.
• Delair
• Denel
• DJI Innovations
• Donecle
• Draganfly Innovations Inc.
• DPI UAV Systems (Dragonfly Pictures, Inc.)
• DroneDeploy
• DroneUp/AirMap
• Drone Volt
• Elbit Systems Ltd.
• EHang (Beijing Yi-Hang Creation Science & Technology Co., Ltd.)
• General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI)
• Honeywell International Inc
• Hyundai Motor Group (Supernal)
• ICR Group (formerly Sky-Futures )
• Intel Corp.
• Insitu Inc.
• Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd.
• JD.com
• Joby Aviation
• Kaman Corp.
• Kespry
• Korean Air Aerospace Business Division
• L3Harris Technologies
• Leonardo (formerly Finmeccanica)
• Lockheed Martin Corp
• Lufthansa Technik AG
• Matternet
• Microdrones GmbH
• MDA
• Micropilot
• Microsoft Corp.
• Motorola Solutions/Cape
• Northrop Grumman Corp
• Ondas Holdings, Inc./Airobotics
• Pablo Air
• Parrot SA
• PrecisionHawk Inc. (acquired by Field)
• QinetiQ
• Qualcomm Technologies Inc.
• Rakuten
• Safran
• Resolute ISR Inc.
• Rheinmetall (formerly EMT Ingenieurgesellschaft)
• RTX Corporation
• Saab Group
• Schiebel Elektronische Geraete GmbH
• SF Express
• Sikorsky Aircraft Co. (Part of Lockheed Martin Corp.)
• Skycatch
• Skydio
• SkySpecs
• SkyDrop (formerly Flirtey)
• ST Engineering
• Sony (Aerosense)
• Survey Copter (subsidiary of Airbus)
• Swift Engineering
• Tekever Group
• Teledyne Technologies Inc. (including FLIR)
• Terra Drone
• Textron Systems Unmanned Systems
• Thales
• Tonner Drones (formerly Delta Drone)
• Trimble Navigation
• UMS Skeldar
• Unifly
• Verizon
• Volansi Inc. (acquired by SNC)
• Volocopter
• Wing (Alphabet, GoogleX)
• XAG Co., Ltd. (formerly XAircraft)
• Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd.
• Zala Aero Group
• Zeitview (formerly DroneBase)
• Zero Zero Robotics
• Zipline

Appendix: Sources on Worldwide UAS Operators