AP 80: JB-GPT's AI TUTOR—Modern Era Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles

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AI INSTRUCTIONS

• Preferred use references from: https://www.jb-gpt-prompts.com/jb-gpts-military-references

• If additional references are used, they must be drawn from reputable and scholarly sources. These may include academic publications, books from established historians, official government documents, respected think tanks, and recognized academic institutions such as leading universities.

• For follow-up question:

• Provide 5 (or change number) numbered key points (40–60 words each), with author, book title, and chapter.

• Add a separate Harvard-style bibliography.

• Suggest 3 more follow-up questions.

• Use clear language—no specialist jargon.

Follow-Up Questions (Delete those you don't use, or create your own e.g,, expand on key point four).

01. How have AI and autonomous technologies transformed the operational roles of UAVs in modern airpower?
02. What ethical and legal challenges arise from the use of autonomous or semi-autonomous UAVs in combat environments?
03. In what ways does the proliferation of UAVs among non-state actors and state militaries influence future air doctrine and strategic stability?

Modern Era Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles

Subtitle: How technological advancements are reshaping unmanned aerial combat systems

OVERVIEW

The modern era of Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) reflects a profound transformation in how airpower is projected, managed, and understood. From persistent surveillance to precision strike roles, UAVs have become central to contemporary doctrines of joint operations and integrated combat systems. Driven by technological advancement and evolving operational demands, UAVs now perform strategic functions across conventional warfare, counterinsurgency, and grey-zone operations. They embody a shift toward networked, risk-tolerant, and data-driven air strategies. The 25 May 2025 mass UAV and missile assault on Ukraine by Russia underscores the operational and psychological power of these systems. This AI prompt enables further exploration of doctrinal, ethical, and technological questions surrounding the rise of uninhabited platforms in 21st-century conflict.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

1. Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV): An aircraft with no onboard pilot, used for reconnaissance, surveillance, targeting, or attack missions.

2. ISR: Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance—core mission area for UAVs. 

3. Swarm Tactics: Coordinated deployment of multiple UAVs operating collaboratively or semi-autonomously.

4. Persistent Surveillance: Continuous ISR coverage, often enabled by high-endurance UAVs.

5. Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA): UAVs operated via human control stations at a distance.

6. Combat Cloud: A digital network where UAVs and other assets share real-time data.

7. Loyal Wingman: A UAV designed to fly in coordination with manned platforms, enhancing survivability and lethality.

8. Attritable Systems: Low-cost UAVs designed to be expendable in high-risk environments.

9. AI-Enabled Autonomy: Use of artificial intelligence to enable UAVs to operate with reduced or no human input.

10. Counter-UAV Systems: Technologies developed to detect, disrupt, or destroy hostile UAVs.

KEY POINTS

1. Strategic Shift Toward Uninhabited Airpower
   UAVs are redefining strategic airpower by offering endurance, reach, and reduced risk to human operators. High-altitude systems like the Global Hawk allow ISR operations deep into contested airspace.
   Source: Burke et al., 2022 – Ch. 5

2. Uninhabited Systems in Irregular Warfare
   Insurgent groups and non-state actors increasingly use commercial and militarized UAVs to conduct asymmetric operations, eroding traditional air superiority.
   Source: Burke et al., 2022 – Ch. 9

3. Doctrinal Integration and Force Design
   UAVs are now essential to modern doctrine, operating in tandem with manned platforms as force multipliers within manned-unmanned teaming constructs.
   Source: ADF, 2023 – Ch. 2; Mason, 1986 – Ch. 10

4. AI and Autonomous Technologies
   Artificial intelligence enhances UAV decision-making capabilities, especially in ISR processing, target recognition, and strike authorisation loops.
   Source: Gray, 2012 – Ch. 6

5. Attritable UAVs and Risk Management
   Low-cost, disposable UAVs provide scalable options for tactical saturation, ISR, and decoy operations in environments where survivability is limited.
   Source: Burke et al., 2022 – Ch. 5

6. Legal and Ethical Considerations
   The deployment of autonomous UAVs raises significant ethical questions surrounding accountability, targeting discrimination, and command responsibility.
   Source: Burke et al., 2022 – Ch. 5

7. ISR Supremacy and Data Dominance
   UAVs provide near-real-time ISR over vast areas, contributing to rapid decision cycles and enhancing situational awareness for ground and air commanders.
   Source: Olsen, 2011 – Ch. 14

8. Defensive Adaptation and Counter-UAV Doctrine
   Nations are developing counter-UAV capabilities such as jamming, directed energy weapons, and kinetic interceptors to defend against hostile UAV swarms.
   Source: ADF, 2023 – Ch. 2

9. Global Proliferation and Allied Integration
   Allied air forces are embedding UAVs into national and coalition force structures, increasing interoperability and extending operational reach.
   Source: Olsen, 2017 – Ch. 4

10. Historical Parallels and Strategic Bombing Logic
    UAV operations echo the logic of earlier strategic bombing—deep strike, psychological effect, and industrial disruption—through new technological means.
    Source: Overy, 2015 – Postscript

11. Case Study: Russian UAV Assault on Ukraine (May 2025)
    On 25 May 2025, Russia launched a combined strike involving over 85 Shahed UAVs and more than 200 cruise and ballistic missiles. The attack on Kyiv and other targets illustrated the scale, complexity, and psychological effect of UAV-driven warfare in peer conflict.
    Source: Wall Street Journal, 2025

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Burke, R., Fowler, M. & Matisek, J. (2022) Military Strategy, Joint Operations, and Airpower, 2nd ed., Georgetown University Press.
   Ch. 5: “The Future of Airpower” — Examines UAV integration with AI and emerging command architectures.

2. Burke, R., Fowler, M. & Matisek, J. (2022) Military Strategy, Joint Operations, and Airpower, 2nd ed., Georgetown University Press.
   Ch. 9: “Irregular Warfare and Insurgent Airpower” — Offers doctrinal analysis and real-world UAV case studies in insurgent warfare.

3. Olsen, J.A. (ed.) (2011) Global Air Power, Potomac Books.
   Ch. 14: “Australia and the Asia-Pacific Airpower Future” — Discusses UAVs within future regional security architectures.

4. Gray, C.S. (2012) Airpower for Strategic Effect, Air University Press.
   Ch. 6: “Technological Transformation” — Highlights uninhabited systems as key disruptors in strategic theory.

5. Olsen, J.A. (ed.) (2017) Airpower Applied: U.S., NATO, and Israeli Combat Experience, Naval Institute Press.
   Ch. 4: “The Israeli Air Force and Asymmetric Conflicts, 1982–2014” — Reviews UAV integration into Israeli doctrine.

6. Australian Defence Force (ADF) (2023) ADF Air Power: Edition 1, Air and Space Power Centre, Canberra.
   Ch. 2: “Generating Air Power” — Describes the roles of uninhabited platforms in ISR, strike, mobility, and control of the air.

7. Department of Defence (Australia) (2022) Defence Capability Manual, Canberra.
   Sect. 5.2: “Emerging Technologies and Integration Pathways” — Discusses development and acquisition pathways for UAV capabilities.

8. Mason, R.A. (ed.) (1986) War in the Third Dimension: Essays in Contemporary Air Power, Brassey’s Defence Publishers.
   Ch. 10: “Manned and Unmanned Aircraft” — Provides early analytical forecasts on the doctrinal use of UAVs.

9. Warden, J.A. (1990) The Air Campaign: Planning for Combat, National Defense University Press.
   Ch. 4: “Center of Gravity” — Includes reference to the conceptual use of uninhabited systems in force projection.

10. Overy, R.J. (2015) The Bombers and the Bombed: Allied Air War over Europe 1940–1945, Penguin Books.
    Postscript: “Enduring Legacies” — Draws connections between historical strategic bombing and contemporary UAV employment.

11. Wall Street Journal (2025) “Russia Launches Massive Aerial Assaults on Ukraine, Defying Trump’s Peace Calls”, The Wall Street Journal, 26 May.
    Reports the largest UAV and missile strike of the war, illustrating strategic escalation through uninhabited systems. https://www.wsj.com