Table VI Comparative cost summary Item... | Emerald Publishing

Table VI

Comparative cost summary

Item	Commentary
Aircraft capital cost	While it has not been possible to obtain definitive data relating to the capital cost of an LE-RPAS, an estimate has been offered by Corcoran (2014) who indicates that in 2013 the capital cost of an Aerosonde Mk 4.7 was some US$100,000. Furthermore, Corcoran (2014) reports that Aerosonde has recently developed a civilian variant of their military-specification RPA which has a lighter airframe and 20% greater endurance at some 60% of the base cost (i.e. US$60,000)
Camera cost	In addition, to the cost of the aircraft, that of the camera must be included and this clearly depends on the type (e.g. video v still) and its quality. In general terms, it is understood that a high-quality still camera costs around US$75,000 (Goldberg et al., 2013)
Total capital cost	The resultant overall capital cost of a full LE-RPAS with HDS camera is some US$135-175,000. By comparison, Robinson (2016) indicates that a two-seat Raven light helicopter has a capital cost of US$473,400, to which must be added the camera cost
Aircrew numbers	The commercial variant of the Aerosonde mentioned above was also reported by Corcoran (2014) as being expected to have fully automated take-off, landing and flight systems enabling a crew size of one pilot, one camera operator and one maintainer. This is broadly similar to the crew size for a small rotary wing aircraft
Fuel consumption	The fuel consumption of an LE-RPAS is also extremely low – for example, in August 1998 an Aerosonde Mk 1 flew across the Atlantic in just more than 26 hours on 7 L of fuel (Barnard Microsystems, 1999). However, a broad order consumption figure is understood to be some 0.6 L/h which equates to 0.6 L/100 km at cruising speed. Thus, an indicative 10 h mission time would use some 6 L of unleaded fuel (i.e. costing around US$1-2/h) By comparison, Robinson (2016) indicates that the two-seat Raven light helicopter consumes US$77/h in fuel (based on fuel costing US$5.50/gal and 14.0 gal/h for average use). Thus, even assuming that the Raven could fly non-stop for 12 hours, the fuel costs alone would be some US$900 vs those of the Aerosonde at US$10-20 for a similar flight. Furthermore, given the typical endurance of a medium-range helicopter, the 12 hour mission would require 3-4 separate flights
Other costs	While the above elements are perceived to be the key costs for the operation of an RPA, to deliver a full system it would be necessary to include, at minimum, the safety, security, data integration

Item	Commentary
Aircraft capital cost	While it has not been possible to obtain definitive data relating to the capital cost of an LE-RPAS, an estimate has been offered by Corcoran (2014) who indicates that in 2013 the capital cost of an Aerosonde Mk 4.7 was some US$100,000. Furthermore, Corcoran (2014) reports that Aerosonde has recently developed a civilian variant of their military-specification RPA which has a lighter airframe and 20% greater endurance at some 60% of the base cost (i.e. US$60,000)
Camera cost	In addition, to the cost of the aircraft, that of the camera must be included and this clearly depends on the type (e.g. video v still) and its quality. In general terms, it is understood that a high-quality still camera costs around US$75,000 (Goldberg et al., 2013)
Total capital cost	The resultant overall capital cost of a full LE-RPAS with HDS camera is some US$135-175,000. By comparison, Robinson (2016) indicates that a two-seat Raven light helicopter has a capital cost of US$473,400, to which must be added the camera cost
Aircrew numbers	The commercial variant of the Aerosonde mentioned above was also reported by Corcoran (2014) as being expected to have fully automated take-off, landing and flight systems enabling a crew size of one pilot, one camera operator and one maintainer. This is broadly similar to the crew size for a small rotary wing aircraft
Fuel consumption	The fuel consumption of an LE-RPAS is also extremely low – for example, in August 1998 an Aerosonde Mk 1 flew across the Atlantic in just more than 26 hours on 7 L of fuel (Barnard Microsystems, 1999). However, a broad order consumption figure is understood to be some 0.6 L/h which equates to 0.6 L/100 km at cruising speed. Thus, an indicative 10 h mission time would use some 6 L of unleaded fuel (i.e. costing around US$1-2/h)By comparison, Robinson (2016) indicates that the two-seat Raven light helicopter consumes US$77/h in fuel (based on fuel costing US$5.50/gal and 14.0 gal/h for average use). Thus, even assuming that the Raven could fly non-stop for 12 hours, the fuel costs alone would be some US$900 vs those of the Aerosonde at US$10-20 for a similar flight. Furthermore, given the typical endurance of a medium-range helicopter, the 12 hour mission would require 3-4 separate flights
Other costs	While the above elements are perceived to be the key costs for the operation of an RPA, to deliver a full system it would be necessary to include, at minimum, the safety, security, data integration