Beyond Line of Sight

This week was a look into beyond line of sight technologies, or BLOS. It was quite difficult to obtain information in this area due to a simple fact: BLOS is primarily a military grade technology, so private sector and civilian information on the technologies is hard to come by.
That being said, the following information and analysis relates what I was able to find:
Beyond Line of Sight
Abstract
As of now, beyond line of sight (BLOS) capabilities are typically found in the defense industry. However, as we near development of NextGen and the systems and products that will integrate unmanned aerial systems (UAS) into the national air space (NAS), it is possible more robust UAS technologies such as beyond line of sight capabilities will be introduced to the private sector. Unmanned aerial systems like the Global Hawk and Predator utilize long range operations for surveillance and boarder protection using satellite based data exchange.
Analysis
 Ku Band is used for beyond line of sight operations for multiple UASs including the Global Hawk, Predator, and their derivatives which utilize the BLOS C2 system which relies on a 11.7-12.7 GHz download and 14-14.5 satellite data uplink (Valavanis, Oh, & Piegl, 2008). The primary concern with BLOS satellite control links is latency, thus the need for autopilot operations in which the pilot, “…remains out of the C2 Loop but monitors the flight operations for unusual situations.” (Valavanis, Oh, & Piegl, 2008). In the case of the Global Hawk, the UAS ground control station (GCS) segment consists of a launch and recovery element (LRE) and a mission control element (MCE) (Northrop Grumman, 2014). The RD-2B LRE and the RD-2A MCE work together to provide both line of sight (LOS) and BLOS operations. The system requires operators to switch from LRE to MCE for BLOS operation. This creates a potential issue due to human factors being introduced. If the pilot/operator do not “catch” the aircraft as it leaves LOS then loss link may occur, or communication or procedures concerning operating status is not conveyed from one pilot-operator to another as in the Predator B accident with the Border Patrol. Additionally, if the aircraft is to be on mission for extended periods of time multiple pilots will switch control in shifts, introducing potential information exchange issues. Once operating BLOS the aircrafts autopilot GUI executes the loaded flight plan, operators/pilots can alter the flight paths if necessary if, for example, airspace is crowded or mission parameters change.
Conclusion
The downside to BLOS operations as previously stated is latency, which can cause situational awareness issues, a large concern when discussing UAS integration into national air space (NAS). Although new advancements are being made to combat situational awareness issues, latency is why - at this time - I believe LOS operations are the only safe use of UAS in NAS. However, as technology progresses and BLOS and situational awareness in UAS improves, the commercial usage of BLOS UAS operations will increase and many missions – from large farm crop dusting, to commercial goods delivery to difficult geographical locations (like Coke delivering soda to skyscraper workers). I know in many parts of the world there are hard to reach locations with humanitarian needs, i.e. medicine and food, however either dangerous terrain - which makes for virtually impassable roads, or militant forces - making ground travel too dangerous, makes UAS BLOS operations a viable answer. The downside is in the cost however, as many commercial and private uses do not warrant the investment. I can see where organizations could perhaps pull resources and gain positive publicity by helping fund UAS while aiding those in need at the same time by simply investing in UAS with BLOS capabilities, but until such technologies are brought down into the consumer or industrial price brackets UAS with BLOS capabilities will be scarce in the NAS. That being said, an interest from the private sector could spur development and in turn reduce production costs of BLOS capable UAS.

References:
Kimon P. Valavanis, Paul Y. Oh, Les A. Piegl (2014). Unmanned Aircraft Systems (2008).
International Symposium on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, UAV’08.
Northrop Grumman (2014). RQ-4 Global Hawk High-Altitude, Long-Endurance Unmanned
Aerial Reconnaissance System Facts. Retrieved from: http://www.northropgrumman.com/Capabilities/RQ4Block20GlobalHawk/Documents/HALE_Factsheet.pdf