LONDON — As pirates continue to use small boats to swarm and hijack cargo ships, naval forces increasingly will be employing unmanned systems to help train merchant seaman to fend off attackers.
Companies such as ASV Ltd., based in Chichester, U.K., are building “fast marine target drones” that can maneuver through the water to test the defensive skills of maritime security personnel aboard warships and merchant vessels.
The aluminum hulls come in two sizes, a 5-meter version and a 6.2-meter variant. Both systems are equipped with removable masts that house forward-looking adjustable video cameras. They travel at speeds of up to 30 to 35 knots, respectively, and can be controlled remotely up to 10 kilometers away, said Stephen Phillips, managing director. The boats offer radio and GPS feedback to a control system that can operate up to six boats at a time.
“They can be made to be semi-autonomous,” he told National Defense during an international defense and security technology exhibition here. “You can set up way points for them to navigate, but for target practice it’s more useful to have them be remotely controlled.”
The company has sold nine boats to the U.K. Ministry of Defence. Its Royal Navy employs six boats at a time for targeting practice during two-week long exercises. Sailors fire bullets at the vessels as they approach in “swarming” attacks. The boats are armored to withstand the damage. An optional onboard scoring system measures the distance of missed shots. Company representatives repair the boats overnight and set them out again for more training in the morning, said Phillips.
The systems cost about 30,000 British pounds. Most of the expense comes from the electronics, which can be tailored to customers’ needs, he pointed out.
The company has received interest from potential clients around the globe, particularly in Asia, said Phillips. Maritime security concerns there include piracy and the threat of swarming boats — a tactic that mimics how bees and other swarming creatures attack larger foes.
The U.S. Navy had to contend with such a threat in 2008, when five suspected Iranian Revolutionary Guard Navy boats charged three of its warships as they were transiting the Straits of Hormuz. The watercraft came within 200 yards of the ships, allegedly dropped boxes into the water and transmitted hostile radio messages.
Somali pirates off the coast of East Africa have adopted similar swarming tactics to attack and hijack ships farther and farther out at sea. As of early last month, the U.S. Navy-led Combined Task Force 151, a coalition of 32 vessels from 18 nations, was monitoring 11 ships held by pirates, said a Navy official.