High Altitude Platform Market Size

High Altitude Platform Market Size

High Altitude Platform Market size was estimated at over USD 1 billion in 2016 and is predicted to grow at over 5% CAGR from 2017 to 2024.

Increase in global defense spending across various economies for the procurement of advanced defense and surveillance technologies such as UAVs is a major factor driving the growth of the HAP market. Rising terrorist and trafficking activities across the world is contributing towards the substantial increase in defense expenditure. For instance, in October 2017, a sniper attack in Las Vegas accounted for approximately 59 deaths and 527 injuries. Such instances have led to widespread panic and drastically impacted business operations. Additionally, the platforms can provide clear and concise images of objects over a long period of time. Governments in India, UK and the U.S. have initiated grants and programs to aid companies operating in the global high altitude platform market. For instance, the French government has offered financial funding to Thales Alenia Space for the research and prototype development of the Stratobus.
 

There is rapid growth of the industrial sector in Asia Pacific, primarily in countries such as China and India, due to high availability of low cost, skilled labor and raw materials. Owing to this, there is high demand for outsourced activities, which require the internet for functioning efficiently and maintaining connectivity to the clients and their business units across a large geographical area. Furthermore, there is rising demand for eco-friendly technologies that rely very less on conventional power sources. Solar-powered HAP vehicles can massively reduce the dependence on traditional fuel sources and is anticipated to drive the high altitude platform market in the long-term.
 

These vehicles require high initial costs for the manufacturing and continuous recurring costs for the maintenance, posing a challenge to the high altitude platform market growth. High exposure to wind speed ranging more than 95 mph can result in substantial damage to the technologies. The development of these technologies requires a very skilled workforce with specialized training in the development and the maintenance of these systems.