STUDY ON OPTIMAL BALANCE OF MANNED AND REMOTELY PILOTED AIRCRAFT.

SEC. 1076. STUDY ON OPTIMAL BALANCE OF MANNED AND REMOTELY PILOTED AIRCRAFT.(a) Study.—(1) In general.—Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall commission a study by an independent, non-profit organization 124 STAT. 4379 on the optimal balance between manned and remotely piloted aircraft of the Armed Forces.(2) Selection.—The independent, non-profit organization selected for the study under paragraph (1) shall be qualified on the basis of having performed work in the fields of national security and combat systems.(b) Matters Included.—The study under subsection (a) shall include the following:(1) With respect to each military department, an assessment of the feasibility and desirability of a more rapid transition from manned to remotely piloted aircraft for a range of operations, including combat operations.(2) An evaluation of the current ability of each military department to resist attacks mounted by foreign militaries with significant investments in research and development and deployment of remotely piloted aircraft, including an assessment of each military department’s ability to defend against—(A) a large enemy force of remotely piloted aircraft; and(B) any other relevant scenario involving remotely piloted aircraft that the Secretary determines appropriate.(3) An analysis of—(A) current and future capabilities of foreign militaries in developing and deploying remotely piloted aircraft; and(B) identified vulnerabilities of United States weapons systems to foreign remotely piloted aircraft.(4) Conclusions on the matters described in paragraphs (1) through (3) and what the independent, non-profit organization conducting the study determines is the optimal balance of investment in development and deployment of manned versus remotely piloted aircraft.(c) Report.—Not later than December 1, 2011, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report that includes the study under subsection (a).(d) Form.—(1) Study.—The study under subsection (a) shall include a classified annex with respect to the matters described in subsection (b)(3).(2) Report.—The report under subsection (c) may include a classified annex.(e) Remotely Piloted Aircraft Defined.—In this section, the term “remotely piloted aircraft” means any unmanned aircraft operated remotely, whether within or beyond line-of-sight, including unmanned aerial systems, unmanned aerial vehicles, remotely piloted vehicles, and remotely piloted aircraft.