Ground Equipment & Facilities

Personnel

For relatively small UAVs, mainly basic monitors and operators are needed for the general processes. For large UAVs, besides control monitors and operators, maintenance personnel might also be considered.

To accomplish certain tasks, other specific jobs might be needed. These jobs should be considered according to the UAV operation scenario.

Ground Station

The ground station is the base of the UAS. Here are some parts of the station that might be needed according to previous experiences: staging area; fuel storage tank; cargo storage; mission control area; office; maintenance and preparation area; UAV housing area; garage for other auxiliary equipment, etc. The size of the station needs to be carefully calculated in order to complete all the missions appropriately.

Here’s an example of the map of a ground station:

Equipment

For relatively small UAVs, a landing platform might be enough, while for larger ones, runway constructions might be essential. Also, here are some facilities that can be considered into the operation system: refueling (charging) vehicles; cargo transportation vehicles; chocks (to prevent sliding after halted); aircraft deicing vehicles; ground power vehicles; air source vehicles; tow tractor; etc.