Acquisition of Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Unmanned Aerial Systems: Lessons Learned from the South Korean Military

To promote Industry 4.0, the Korean government encourages the military to introduce commercial unmanned aerial systems (UAS). The following issues have arisen as a result of introduction programs implemented since 2017. First, different legacies for each military unit make it difficult to establish common terms. This leads to confusion when it comes to drafting common policy guidelines for policymakers. Second, the rapid introduction of commercial technology is hampered by the existence of separate bureaucratic organizations and document systems. The bureaucratically separated acquisition system makes it difficult to document the military’s requirements for applications not fully specified and changes in requirements are inordinately slow. Third, acquisition strategies continue to be dominated by a platform-centric concept. By default, the commercial UAS relies heavily on civilian information and communications technologies. Because of platform-centric technology planning, it is difficult to envision the commercial UAS as a portal of diverse connected industries. Based on South Korea’s experience, we highlight lessons learned when using the military to drive Industry 4.0 technologies at the strategic national level. The areas covered include legacy of different military units, immediate decision-making structures, and the use of open platforms.