Military Embedded Systems

Unmanned aircraft market will surge due to defense spending: report

News

September 26, 2022

Dan Taylor

Technology Editor

Military Embedded Systems

NEW YORK, New York. The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market will grow by $32.4 billion from 2021 through 2026 for a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.41% due to growing defense spending, a new report predicts.

The report, from Technavio, predicts that increasing defense spending on unmanned technologies, their low cost compared to fighter jets, and the emergence of miniaturized electo-optical/infrared (EO/IR) systems will drive the growth.

However, the market faces challenges in the areas of bandwidth, limited endurance, and non-uniform laws and regulations, the report adds.

"This study identifies the development of alternate propulsion technologies for UAVs as one of the prime reasons driving the UAV market growth during the next few years," the report states. "North America will account for 45% of the market's growth throughout the forecast period. In North America, the US is the region with the largest UAV market. The market in this region will expand more slowly than markets in other regions."