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Competitive Intelligence Brief  ·  Ravionics / USG

RAVIONICS: THE MISSING LAYER OF PERSISTENT AERIAL PRESENCE

Operating in the Space Between Fixed Nodes

Ravionics provides the persistent connecting layer that tower-to-tower blind spots, rugged terrain, and the retiring aerostat program leave uncovered.

Fixed Tower
Anduril AST
33 ft. Solar-Powered
3 MI DIAMETER COVERAGE
Ravionics Platform  ·  24-Hour Persistent Loiter
Tower-to-Tower
Blind Spot
Rugged Terrain &
Line-of-Sight Limits
Fixed Tower
Anduril AST
33 ft. Solar-Powered
3 MI DIAMETER COVERAGE
The Gap Is Real. The Numbers Don't Lie.
Border Security
0
CBP small UAS hours across 7,000 miles of U.S. border in FY2025.
Source: CBP / Inside Unmanned Systems, FY2025
That's Only
13 SECONDS
of aerial coverage per border mile per day. 99.98% of the year unmonitored.
Coast Guard
Enough cutters to complete only
6 OF 11
statutory missions.
Source: U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, 2024
Responsible For
0
miles of U.S. shoreline. Persistently under-covered.
Pipeline & Energy
2.6M
miles of pipelines for natural gas and liquid products.
Source: PHMSA / U.S. DOT
Status
The overwhelming majority has
NO CONTINUOUS AERIAL SURVEILLANCE
Agriculture
Aerial imagery used on only 7% of corn acres and <10% of soybean acres.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, 2023
Unmonitored
0
million+ acres of U.S. ag land without persistent overhead awareness.
How the Tools Compare
SystemEnduranceCoverageCost SignalWeakness
Small Public Safety Drones Min. to low hrs Local scene only ~$20/hr
ITS KRS		 Not persistent
ScanEagle-Class ISR UAS 18–20+ hrs
Insitu		 Mobile ISR loiter ~$3.2M system cost
U.S. Air Force		 Needs launcher / recovery kit
Large ISR UAS (RQ-4 Class) Long endurance Theater ISR ~$18,700 recurring/hr
CBO		 Too expensive for routine border coverage
Anduril AST / Sentry Tower 24/7 Fixed Fixed circle ~3 mi diam. 300+ deployed CBP
Anduril		 Persistent, but fixed
RAVIONICS TARGET 24-Hr Design Target* Mobile loiter, zero runway In development Must prove full-scale economics
Coverage Matters: Tower vs. Airborne
Anduril AST Tower (Fixed)
33 feet tall. Sees ~3 miles in diameter. Does not move.
7.1 SQ MI
1-hour coverage7.1 sq mi
24-hour coverage7.1 sq mi
Border passes/dayFixed point only
The same 7.1 square miles, every hour of every day. Persistent in place. Cannot reposition.
Ravionics 24-Hour Platform (Mobile)
Conservative model. 60 mph patrol. 2-mile sensor swath.
2,880 SQ MI / 24 HRS
0
sq mi covered in 24 hours
1-hour coverage0
24-hour coverage2,880 sq mi
Border passes/day1,440 passes
Current CBP baseline13 sec/mile/day
Conservative estimate. Full parameters validated at prototype stage.
Ravionics Fits the CBP Layered Surveillance Stack
CBP AssetStrengthGap Ravionics Targets
Autonomous Surveillance TowersPersistent fixed stare✓Cannot move with the mission
Small UAS TeamsTactical agent support✓Not 24-hour persistent
MQ-9 / Larger AircraftWide-area ISR✓High-cost, centralized, limited availability
Ground SensorsTripwire detection✓Weak sustained tracking
Mobile Surveillance VehiclesFlexible ground surveillance✓Road and terrain constrained
Aerostats (Tethered)Long dwell✓Fixed site, weather-dependent. Being retired.
RAVIONICS PLATFORM Targeted mobile persistence Bridges gaps, extends coverage, reduces agent burden
What CBP Is Already Running. And Where Each System Stops.
MQ-9 Predator B
What It Does
Long-endurance aerial surveillance. Radar, EO/IR, GMTI. Up to 24-hour missions with full crew support. 9 aircraft in CBP inventory.
The Hard Limit
$12,000/hr all-in. Needs a runway and crew of 5 to 8. Only 9 aircraft across the entire southern border. Achieved 1.8% of apprehensions in Tucson. 0.7% in the Rio Grande Valley.
Anduril AST
What It Does
33-ft solar tower. Cameras, radar, thermal, AI via Lattice. Auto-detects and classifies objects up to 7.5 miles. Fits in a pickup truck.
The Hard Limit
Fixed. Cannot reposition. Sees a 7.5-mile radius from one point. 300 towers covers only 30% of the southern border.
RETIRING
Tethered Aerostats
What It Does
Blimps at 1,000 to 3,000 ft. 360-degree coverage across 40+ miles. EO/IR cameras and GMTI radar. 6 large aerostats on the southern border.
The Hard Limit
Tethered. Cannot move. Being retired. CBP's $6B tower expansion explicitly fills the gap it leaves. Nothing else is replacing it.
Fixed Camera Towers (RVSS/IFT)
What It Does
Long-range camera towers feeding CBP command architecture. Up to 7.5-mile detection range. Part of $6B expansion to 1,000 towers by 2034.
The Hard Limit
30% of RVSS towers reported broken or non-operational. Fixed infrastructure. Cannot follow a target.
Ground & Seismic Sensors
What It Does
Passive sensors detecting movement and footsteps. Triggered by seismic or motion input. Complements tower and aerial systems.
The Hard Limit
Detects that something moved. Cannot see, identify, or track. Requires a tower or agent to investigate every trigger. High false-alarm rate from animals.
30–90 MIN
Small Tactical Drones
What It Does
Portable drones with thermal cameras. Deployed reactively after a sensor flags activity. Gives agents eyes into inaccessible terrain.
The Hard Limit
30 to 90 minutes of flight time. Tactical, not persistent. Reactive, not standing infrastructure. One event. Then it lands.
AI Integration (RAPTOR)
What It Does
Processes radar, infrared, and video data to detect and track suspicious activity along U.S. borders in near real time.
The Hard Limit
Only 1 of 12 CBP command components is currently autonomous. Human operators still required around the clock to monitor surveillance feeds.

The Aerostat Is Being Retired. Nothing Is Replacing It. That Is the Gap.

Fuel & Wear-and-Tear Comparison

Framework only. Ravionics cost model in development.

Cost BucketTower (AST)Drone / UAV (Ravionics Class)
FuelNone (solar / grid)Hybrid electric / diesel (loiter efficient)
WearSensors, mast, comms, solar, weatherEngines, props, batteries, motors, airframe
LaborRemote monitoring & maintenanceSmall ground team, launch / recovery crew
MobilityFixedHigh
PersistenceVery high24-hour design target
The Bottom Line

CBP already has eyes. Ravionics gives them mobile 24-hour presence where the existing stack is thin, fixed, overloaded, or too expensive to sustain.

Persistent 24-Hour Presence
Continuous overhead coverage, not episodic response
Mobile. Follow the Mission
Repositionable. Not tethered to a fixed point.
Cover the Gaps Not the Towers
Fills the space between fixed nodes
Reduce Burden. Deliver Awareness
Actionable intelligence, not more feeds to monitor
RAVIONICS: THE MOBILE PERSISTENCE LAYER CBP DOESN'T HAVE TODAY.
Built for the mission. Driven by the gap. Delivered with proof.
RAVIONICS
Persistence. Anywhere.