US military semi-submersible unmanned supply boat unveiled
2024-08-27
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The prototype of the "Low Profile Autonomous Vessel" semi-submersible unmanned supply vessel participated in the "Convergence Project-Apex 4" joint exercise.
The U.S. Navy's Apalachicola autonomous expeditionary high-speed transfer ship.
Recently, a semi-submersible unmanned supply boat named "Low Profile Autonomous Vessel" made its debut in the U.S. military's "Project Convergence-Vertex 4" joint exercise, attracting attention from the outside world. According to reports, this type of unmanned boat adopts a semi-submersible speedboat design, mainly used to provide flexible and efficient logistics and weapons supply for the U.S. Marine Corps to carry out "inner line operations" and "island hopping operations" in disputed waters, and enhance the U.S. military's tactical logistics supply capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region.
Facilitates rapid replenishment at sea
The U.S. Marine Corps said that the "low-profile autonomous vessel" borrowed the design of the semi-submersible speedboats used by drug traffickers, and was improved based on the U.S. Marine Corps' "Expeditionary Forward Base" combat concept. In the future, it will develop into an exclusive unmanned supply boat for the U.S. Marine Corps.
It is reported that two prototypes of "low-profile autonomous ships" have been put into testing. The boat is about 21 meters long, 2 meters wide, 1.5 meters deep, and has a freeboard of about 30 centimeters. The prototype boat is equipped with two engines and is propelled by twin propellers. The speed exceeds 11 knots. There is a load compartment in the middle of the hull, and a simple mast is installed at the stern, with communication equipment such as navigation radar and satellite antenna installed. The boat has no crew cabin and is remotely controlled by two operators using handheld controllers. The boat can carry a 1-ton payload or 2 "Naval Strike Missiles (NSM)". In addition to the semi-submersible design, the boat can also dive more than 1 meter deep underwater for stealth navigation.
The U.S. Marine Corps was "impressed" by the semi-submersible speedboat used by drug traffickers in the process of cooperating with the Coast Guard and the Drug Enforcement Administration to combat drug cartels. This semi-submersible speedboat is not only difficult to detect and track, but also has a small tonnage and simple structure, with a high cost-effectiveness, and can be used in large quantities as a consumable in war. According to foreign media reports, the U.S. Marine Corps will conduct further tests on this type of unmanned boat in a joint exercise to be held in the near future, and will purchase it in batches in the next few years.
Promoting the unmanned equipment of the Marine Corps
In recent years, the U.S. Marine Corps has considered adopting unmanned autonomous combat systems in almost all areas, and hopes to assign as many tasks as possible to unmanned autonomous combat systems. To this end, the U.S. Marine Corps has accelerated the development of autonomous equipment such as semi-submersible unmanned supply boats to enhance the autonomy of the troops.
Senior officials of the U.S. Marine Corps believe that unmanned autonomous combat systems that "exclude humans" have unparalleled advantages in high-end maritime warfare. Unmanned autonomous combat systems can not only overcome the physiological and psychological challenges of combat environments such as the ocean and sky to the human body, but will also further expand combat space and means, making controversial military operations simpler and more efficient, and lower combat costs. In particular, in the "inside force" combat concept created by the U.S. Marine Corps, unmanned autonomous combat systems meet the description of this combat concept of "small, lethal, low-signature, highly mobile and easy to maintain" combat forces, and will be sent to the Asia-Pacific region in large numbers in the future to improve wartime transportation efficiency.
To this end, the U.S. Marine Corps is accelerating the creation of unmanned autonomous transport platforms at sea. In early 2023, the U.S. Navy received the first unmanned autonomous expeditionary high-speed transfer ship, the Pioneer-class "Apalachicola". The ship adopts a catamaran design, is 103 meters long and 28.5 meters wide, has a full load displacement of 2,362 tons, a maximum speed of 45 knots, and a stern cargo hold area of 1,800 square meters. The ship has autonomous operation and combat capabilities. It is currently the largest unmanned ship in the U.S. Navy. It can operate autonomously for up to 30 days without intervention, with a range of about 2,770 kilometers, and can quickly replenish distributed Marines over a large area.
It can be foreseen that in future "island hopping operations" in the Asia-Pacific waters, the coordinated use of Pioneer-class expeditionary high-speed transfer ships and semi-submersible unmanned supply boats will become the main mode of tactical logistics supply operations of the US Marine Corps.
Supporting the “missile wall” containment strategy
The core value of the semi-submersible unmanned supply boat lies in its concealed, fast and cheap transfer and supply capabilities. This type of boat can carry two "Navy Strike Missiles" to provide rapid firepower and logistical replenishment for the US "Marine Corps Expeditionary Anti-Ship System" in the vast waters of the Western Pacific, providing direct, cutting-edge firepower and logistical support for its implementation of the "missile wall" strategy, and helping to open up the "last mile of the battlefield."
The so-called "missile wall" strategy of the US military is to form a firepower advantage by deploying mobile land-based anti-ship and air defense missiles on the Asia-Pacific island chain. These firepower systems are mainly composed of medium-range cruise missile launchers installed on joint light tactical vehicles, carried by Pioneer-class expeditionary high-speed transport ships or transport aircraft, and flexibly deployed and quickly evacuated between frontier bases and islands in the Asia-Pacific waters. However, a major problem facing this strategy is the inability to replenish ammunition in a timely manner. To this end, the US Marine Corps' idea is to have a semi-submersible unmanned supply boat carrying a "Navy Strike Missile" dive into the water, secretly sail to the designated island or expeditionary forward base, and hand it over to the US Marine Corps to transport it to the nearest missile launch base that needs replenishment, thereby realizing the ammunition replenishment in the "island hopping operation."
Although the U.S. Marine Corps has verified the advantages of semi-submersible unmanned supply boats through exercises, this kind of non-confrontational background test is not of sufficient practical reference. First of all, it is difficult for this semi-submersible unmanned supply boat with a speed of less than 12 knots to effectively supply the "island hopping operation" in a highly confrontational environment. Secondly, due to the lack of defense measures, the probability of semi-submersible unmanned supply boats being discovered and sunk during the voyage is relatively high, especially when the navigation information is shielded and interfered with, its combat use will be greatly reduced. Thirdly, the survivability of the U.S. military's wartime maritime supply points in the Asia-Pacific waters is worrying. As a semi-submersible unmanned supply boat that opens up the "last mile of the battlefield", it is difficult to complete the closed loop of ammunition and material supply operations. Its future use needs to be further observed. (Jiao Nan)
(Source: China National Defense News)
