Development Trends in Unmanned Surface Vessels

Some developments are equipping the USVs with missiles and remote weapon systems to take on sea or shore-based targets.

Defense Mirror provides insights into some prominent USV projects.

Ukraine

MAGURA V5

On February 1, 2024 Ukraine utilized MAGURA V5 to destroy Russia's Ivanovets missile corvette in an operation carried out near Lake Donuzlav in occupied Crimea. Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) disclosed that Ukrainian-made MAGURA V5 USVs delivered six direct hits to the hull of the Russian vessel.

A fortnight later, Russia’s large landing ship "Caesar Kunikov" sunk after a Global Hawk drone-guided MAGURA USVs struck it from the side. Videos of the large ship keeling over and vanishing below the water’s surface are all over the internet. The MAGURA unmanned boats were reportedly guided by a NATO -Global Gawk drone.

SEA BABY

Andriy Yusov, spokesperson for Ukraine's Military Intelligence Directorate, has brought attention to the deployment of Sea Baby USVs in various operations, including the destruction of a portion of the Crimean Kerch Bridge in July 2023.

In October 2022, Sea Baby drones from the SBU special unit attacked ships in Sevastopol Bay, damaging Russian frigates causing damage to the Admiral Makarov and Admiral Essen frigates, along with the minesweeper Ivan Golubets and the patrol ship Ladny.

Subsequent Sea Baby attacks in 2023 damaged several warships, including the Samum missile battleship, Pavel Derzhavin, the SIG tanker, the Olenegorsky Gornyak amphibious assault ship, the Nikolay Mur tugboat, Buyan missile battleship, and Vladimir Kozitsky reconnaissance and hydrographic ship.

In Ukraine’s arsenal, the MAGURA V5 and Sea Baby USVs have achieved what bombers laden with anti-ship missiles and torpedoes and backed up by a first-rate air defense, would have accomplished.

USVs can be launched from various platforms including warships, patrol boats and sea-shores. Smaller USVs can be brought close to launching point by helicopters. Depending upon the mission, their hulls can be coated with stealthy paint reducing their exposure to radar.

Turkey

ULAQ USV

The ULAQ USV, developed jointly by Ares Shipyard and Meteksan Defence Systems, represents Turkey's first domestically produced armed USV.

The ULAQ is designed to perform various tasks, including intelligence gathering, surveillance, reconnaissance, surface warfare, escort missions, and protection of infrastructure.

The ULAQ has undergone sea trials and achieved initial operational capability, as demonstrated during the Denizkurdu 2021 exercise.

SALVO USV

Another Turkish firm, Dearsan Shipyard's SALVO combat USV is designed for autonomous reconnaissance, intelligence operations, surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and base protection.

The SALVO conducted live firing trials in the Sea of Marmara, featuring Roketsan's CIRIT missile on May 25, 2022. Another trial involved an Aselsan-made 12.7 mm remote weapon station (RWS), resulting in target hits.

SANCAR USV

The SANCAR USV is a collaboration between Turkish companies Havelsan and Yonca Onuk, designed for network-centric operations. Launched in June 2022, it completed initial sea trials by September of the same year.

SANCAR AUSV features a communication infrastructure utilizing RF/GSM/SAT systems. Controlled from a mobile Ground Control Station with an ADVENT C4ISR mission system which is compliant with NATO Inter-operability standards. This adaptability extends to deployment on other naval platforms using ADVENT.

The platform is designed for various tasks, including port/base protection, search and rescue, intelligence, reconnaissance, surveillance, patrol, surface warfare, and mine countermeasures.

Key features encompass COLREG Compliant Autonomous Navigation, ADVENT ROTA & ADVENT KALYON Mission System, C2 Integrated Communication, 12.7 mm Remote Controlled Weapon System, Missile Weapon System, Side Scan Sonar, and Ship Data Distribution System.

ALBATROS-S

The Albatros-S is a 7-meter USV swarm system developed by Aselsan, designed to operate independently in a swarm formation without central control. Demonstrations of the USV Swarm project showcased its navigation and adaptability, featuring the Albatros-S alongside Sefine Shipyard's MIR USVs.

The Albatros-S is designed for various applications, such as reconnaissance, surveillance intelligence, engaging targets, coast guard patrol, offensive operations, and port defense. The portable control console supports autonomous mission planning, live view/record applications, ensuring adaptability for maritime operations in various conditions.

MIR USV

The MIR USV, unveiled in June 2022 by Sefine Shipyard, is an Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) vessel featuring variable depth sonar (VDS) for defensive ASW operations in littoral waters, with the flexibility for additional roles in surface drone swarms.

On April 18, 2023, MIR successfully fired a light torpedo, marking the first Turkish USV torpedo launch.

Israel

KATANA

The KATANA supports dual-mode operations, enabling the vessel to function either as a USV or a manned platform with a quick switch-over. This flexibility allows for risk-free remote execution of specific tasks. The system can be installed on different vessels, sharing the same baseline architecture for consistent autonomous navigation and mission planning.

Applications for the KATANA span firefighting, search and rescue, intelligence gathering, fleet defense, security and patrol duties as well as mine-counter-measures and anti-submarine-warfare.

Dutch USV concept

The Netherlands defense ministry and Dutch Naval Design announced on April 13 2024 a partnership to develop USVs for maritime operations, expected to be ready for deployment in about four years.

These USVs, measuring 12 meters in length, will work alongside Anti-Submarine Warfare frigates scheduled for delivery around 2030. Currently, frigates utilize helicopters for anti-submarine missions, but the USVs will provide additional capabilities in this domain.

Australia

Sentinal USV

The collaborative Patrol Boat Autonomy Trial (PBAT) project, led by Austal Australia, has completed Sea Acceptance Trials for the autonomous vessel Sentinel off the Western Australian coastline. The vessel used in the trials, Sentinel (formerly HMAS Maitland), underwent extensive modifications to enable remote and autonomous operations, including upgrades to navigation, communications, bilge, CCTV, and electrical systems. Greenroom Robotics added sensors and computer units to support the Autonomous Control System, GAMA.

The Sentinal, will potentially contribute to projects like the Large Optionally Crewed Surface Vessels (LOSV) recently announced by the Australian Government.

Qatar

Suhail USV

L3Harris and Qatari shipbuilder Performance Marine showcased the first locally-built autonomous Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV), Suhail, at the 2024 Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX).

Designed and locally manufactured by Performance Marine, Suhail is a 39-foot USV that integrates L3Harris’ ASView control system technology. ASView, an open architecture software with embedded artificial intelligence and machine learning, enables unmanned or remote operations from ashore or sea-based control stations to execute pre-planned missions or autonomously adapt to dynamic conditions.

United States

Common Uncrewed Surface Vehicle- UAV, USV Perform Sensor-to-Shooter Co-ordination in U.S. Navy Exercise.

The U.S. Navy utilized the Aerosonde UAV and the Common Uncrewed Surface Vehicle (CUSV) to execute a full detect-to-engage sensor-to-shooter mission exercise. Notably, the CUSV executed the live-fire engagement using a small USV integrated with a missile system.

Equipped with the LIG Nex1 Poniard missile system, the CUSV demonstrated its capability to utilize UAS data for tactical decision-making and target engagement.

Textron Systems’ CUSV engages multiple targets.

In another exercise, the Textron Systems’ CUSV, executed multiple Fast Inshore Attack Craft missions against a moving target. The demonstration marked the first instance of a small USV engaging multiple surface targets in a single salvo.

Textron's CUSV demonstrated the ability to be retrofitted with various payloads including options for expeditionary warfare, surface warfare, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) payloads.

European Union

EUROGUARD USV project

Inspired by Ukraine’s use of Unmanned Attack Boats, the European Union Kicks off Similar Project in Estonia.

The European Defence Fund (EDF) has launched a project led by an Estonian firm, Baltic Workboats to develop small drone vessels.

The EUROGUARD project has officially commenced in Estonia with an investment of almost €100 million. The project involves a collaboration between 23 enterprises and the cooperation of 10 EU Member States.

The primary objective of this initiative is to develop a modular and semi-autonomous surface vessel platform equipped with a remote-control system, aiming to strengthen sea defense capabilities across Europe.