RDC researchers test the effectiveness of pairing the USV and the Splash Drone on a mission. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Alexandra Swan.

The Acquisitions Directorate has a short post about the Research and Development Center, “Research and Development Center projects focus on enhancing Coast Guard mission success,” but for the real meat you have to follow the link to the 50 page “U. S. Coast Guard RDT&E Project Portfolio.” This document provides a brief overview of 46 different projects, many of which involve either using or countering unmanned systems.

These provide a window into how the future Coast Guard might look and are perhaps the only real way the Coast Guard will actually be able to continue to do more with less.