WARFARE EVOLUTION BLOG: So far in this series, we have explored the worldwide markets for military platforms (tanks, ships, submarines, airplanes, and drones). These segments are interesting to the companies that bend metal, but for us, we want to know about the electronic systems inside those platforms. That insatiable yearning is the inspiration for this article. There’s a plethora of these systems, scattered around the services, so we can’t identify all of them here. I'll just mention the major programs and let you discover the rest on your own.

WARFARE EVOLUTION BLOG. Previously, we studied the markets for fighter planes and bombers, ground combat vehicles and tanks, warships and submarines, and unmanned naval vessels (surface and underwater). Now, it’s time to explore the market for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which is rapidly becoming the largest volume segment of the military platforms. First, the UAV designation is actually a misnomer.

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WARFARE EVOLUTION BLOG. In our last escapade, we investigated the worldwide market for warships and submarines. Out of respect for the literary principle of subject matter continuity, we are forced to explore the worldwide market for UNVs (unmanned naval vessels) in this essay, since they are an extension of warships and submarines. UNVs break down into two basic groups: unmanned surface vessels (USV) and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV). We will deal with naval unmanned aerial vehicles (NUAV) in another composition.

WARFARE EVOLUTION BLOG. In previous episodes, we explored the two largest military platform markets: ground combat vehicles and tanks, and fighter planes and bombers. This time, we’ll take a look at the third market for big iron: warships and submarines. I’m going to throw a lot of numbers around in this composition but don’t take them as absolute. Warships sink all the time (Ukraine has sunk or damaged 17 Russian ships in the war so far), and shipyards are launching a new warship now and then. So, look at these numbers as estimates. Let’s start from the top.

WARFARE EVOLUTION BLOG. Last time, we looked at the market for ground combat vehicles and tanks. Now, it’s time to look at the second largest volume platform market in the military: fighter planes and bombers. Let’s start at the top. According to Flight Global, there were about 53,250 military aircraft in the world in 2021. The U.S. flies about 25% of that total (13,250), Russia flies 8% (4,170), and China flies 6% (3,280). This includes fighters, bombers, tankers, cargo planes, ISR (intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance) planes, and helicopters. Keep in mind that these numbers move around. Military aircraft crash all the time, and Russia has lost about 175 aircraft in Ukraine in 16 months.