Page 12 - ADT NOV - DEC 2024 Digital Magazine | GBP

uncrewed vehicles working in zero-emission USV designed for China Makes a Move
tandem with manned ships. hydrographic surveying and coastal
surveillance, which can also be The urgency shown by the U.S.
customised for logistics and kami- and its allies in the Asia Pacific to
Going Local kaze missions. Sagar Defence acquire unmanned naval assets is
The Indian Navy is currently con- Engineering, a private company, in the wake of the massive strides
China has made in the field. At the
ducting trials of its first indigenously has developed an USV that earlier World Defence Show Exhibition in
developed multirole USV for sur- this year completed a 1,500-km Riyadh earlier this year, China State
veillance and minesweeping. The trip from Mumbai to Thoothukudi, Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC)
companies involved in the pro- with support from the Indian revealed Thunderer A2000, a new
ject are Weapon and Electronic Navy. Dronobotics’ Jalchar USV medium-sized combat unmanned
Systems Engineering Establishment is designed for disaster manage- surface vessel (USV) that is cur-
(WESEE), Bharat Electronic Ltd ment, scientific research, as well as rently under development. With
(BEL), and Goa Shipyard Ltd search-and-rescue missions. a displacement of 280 tonnes,
(GSL). The USV is 15 meters long a length of 45 meters, and a top
and has a maximum speed of more speed of 35 knots, the Thunderer
than 30 knots. The service also In March this year, ST Engineering A2000 is powered by twin diesel
wants to introduce USV swarms Marine cut steel on Singapore’s engines and two CPP propellers.
against adversaries and asked first of six future class of Multirole The trimaran hull design ensures
Sagar Defence Engineering to Combat Vessels (MRCV) vessels. low radar cross-section and stealth.
demonstrate a weaponised 12-boat The vessels will host, launch and
swarm. Another USV that will be recover ST Engineering’s Venus
inducted soon is the Brainbox family of USVs, both in their mine In yet another clear signal to its
Smart Ship Operations (SSO), warfare and maritime security adversaries, China unveiled a
which has been jointly developed variants, and also accommodate a large USV at the Airshow China
by Tardid and Accurate Industrial number of unmanned aerial vehi- 2024 exhibition, which took place
Controls. The Brainbox USV, which cles (UAV). The introduction of the in Zhuhai in November this year.
can travel at a speed of 12 n mile/h, MRCVs will enable the Republic The Jari-USV-A large unmanned
has a payload capacity of 200 kg, of Singapore Navy (RSN) to test combat vessel, or Orca, replaces
length of about 8 m, and endurance the possibilities of the manned-un- 500 tonnes, according to a state-
of more than 12 hours. manned teaming (MUM-T) concept ment by China’s Ministry of National
that is catching on among militaries. Defense (MND). The USV, which
Following successful acceptance
trials in October this year, Garden
Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers
(GRSE) has delivered the Jaldoot
USV to India’s Defence Research
and Development Organisation’s
(DRDO) Naval Science and
Technological Laboratory (NSTL)
in Visakhapatnam. The naval
drone, which has been jointly
designed and developed by GRSE
and NSTL/DRDO, is designed for
various missions, including sur-
veillance, reconnaissance, and
maritime security. According to
sources, the USV is able to track
unmanned underwater vehicles
(UUVs) through its acoustic posi-
tioning system.

Jaldoot is just one of the many
USVs that India’s indigenous
defence industry has designed
and developed. Bharat Electronics
Limited (BEL) has to its credit a
12 | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2024 WWW.GBP.COM.SG/ADT