Comparative analysis on primary parameters of loitering munitions of different propulsion systems

As to loitering munitions, the propulsion system significantly influences design missions of flight endurance, cruising velocity, range and the mass of payloads. Based on the constraint of energy balance, the estimation formulation of loitering munitions of three types of propulsion systems is established, including electric-motor type, piston type and jet type. Then the influences of performance parameters on design missions for different types of propulsion systems are analyzed comparatively and individually by the sensitivity analysis method. The characteristics of equivalentenergy density for each kind of fuel material of three propulsion system types are compared from the perspective of energy supply to conclude the original reasons for those three types. These conclusions could provide useful guidelines for selection of propulsion systems for different military operations in the phase of preliminary design of loitering munitions.