The modern battlefield will be joined by the US Navy with its new sea drones as part of the fleet for the joint attack, with frigates, destroyers, and aircraft carriers in the future battlefield.
According to naval planners, the use of military sea drones has the advantage of attacking and monitoring while act as scouts for the 7th Fleet in the Atlantic or the Pacific Ocean. The information gained from these robotic drones yield data for naval strategists to plan against opponents, reported by Fox News.
The uses of military sea drones
What hardware like this can offer to the US Navy is an offensive and defensive platform at standoff distances to engage enemy fleets like the Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) in the Indo-Pacific.
These naval sea drones will be used in clusters that gather intel on the surface or under the water in large areas for extended periods in the ocean. Drones are able to act on their own and in some ways better than humans with benefits from computer technology doing everything automatically. It is important to note that controllers intervene when a kill situation is encountered, applying lethal force, confirmed by defense Maven.
According to Captain Pete Small, who is responsible for the development of unmanned systems, that comes with autonomy, enhanced command, and control used with advanced software, and different weapons loadout. This represents a shift in the used of surface and underwater drones as part of its newest attack options, in its enhanced fleet of manned and robotic ships.
Last January, he spoke at the 32nd annual Surface Navy Association Symposium, stating that all these efforts to develop these naval sea drones are part of a program called 'Unmanned Maritime Autonomy Architecture' that the US Navy will benefit from.
Also read: US Navy Deploys Reagan, Nimitz Carrier Strike Group for Operations
Naval sea drone warframe and its application
Small said that the surface drones will be part of conops (Concepts of Operation), to deploy these Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) in clusters, that use new autonomous functions which allow these cells of USVs to attack and used weapon load-outs for flexibility in operations.
Conceptually these military sea drones will be works in tandem with the fleet and act as clusters in offence or defence for round the clock operations. A sea drone fleet extends the number of surface ships that is part of the US Navy.
According to Small, the Navy is developing an Interface Control Documents that permits military sea drones to work with an integrated autonomy and communications systems. A joint R and D with Textron Systems, and the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren, Va., will look into weaponizing these USVs and adding missiles as extra weapons.
The surface warfare packages, the CUSV (Textron Common Unmanned Surface Vehicle) will have integrating direct and indirect fire systems, for different uses, that was confirmed by Wayne Prender of Textron Systems, mentioned Defense News.
All the research and development in the tests and demonstrations which is agreed on by Textron and the US Navy. The intention is to come up with options that will maximize these weaponized USVs for the best offensive deployment.
Small did emphasize that as tech improved to link all aspect of military drones, from air, sea, land and undersea operations. Cluster linking these systems that become self-propelled without a human operator too. He added all the linked command clusters will be developed by the Naval Air Systems Command.
Other systems that are under development are USVs, UISS, to be deployed by other vessels. One of these is unmanned tenders called Common Unmanned Surface Vehicle or CUSV, made by Textron.
Between the US Navy and Textron developing sea drones of several types, this will lead to the most advanced naval assets for combat.
Related article: US Navy Deploys Reagan, Nimitz Carrier Strike Group for Operations
