Evaluation of TCP Variants on Dynamic UAV Networks

UAV networks are wireless networks composed of dynamic UAVs, characterized by a complex and constantly changing wireless environment. A recent TCP variant, BBR, has been verified to significantly improve packet loss resistance when compared to traditional TCP variants on wired networks. In this paper, we evaluate multiple TCP variants on dynamic UAV networks, taking into account wireless dynamics caused by factors such as mobility, malicious attacks, and traffic from other legitimate users. Our results demonstrate that BBR does not always perform better than other TCP variants in a wireless environment, as opposed to wired networks. Depending on the cause of wireless environment dynamics, other TCP variants may work more effectively. Our findings suggest that no single TCP variant consistently outperforms others in UAV networks. Therefore, when selecting a TCP variant, careful consideration of the different UAV missions is necessary.