Click to Enlarge. The new weapon, the Toloka TLK-150, is much smaller than previous Ukrainian maritime drones. It likely has a much shorter range and slower speed, but should make up for that by being more stealthy and more survivable.
Innovative Submarine Drone Is Ukraine’s New Weapon Against Russian Navy
Ukraine is becoming known for using unconventional naval vessels against the Russian Navy. It's 'maritime drones', which are robot boats loaded with explosives, have helped shape the war in the Black Sea.
Now a new maritime drone has been revealed, one which operates like a small submarine.
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Ukraine has unveiled a 20-foot-long underwater drone to attack Russian warships from under the sea, reports say. The vessel, named Marichka, could give Ukraine a new dimension to its attacks on Putin's Black Sea fleet, as until now, attacks have been mainly carried out by surface naval drones .
Ukraine Unveils Toloka TLK-150 Submarine Drone | Kyiv’s New Stealthy Weapon Against Russian Navy?
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Ukraine’s many inventors and small businesses are answering the call for national defence amid the war with Russia. Ukraine has established a new group to called Brave 1 to harness this creativity, ...
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Ukraine is quickly gaining a reputation for innovation and ingenuity. Faced with the Russian invasion, many inventors and small businesses are answering the call of national defense. New designs are surfacing all the time.
The Ukrainian government is doing its best to both harness this creativity, and bring it together in an efficient and coordinated way. A new group, Brave1, has recently been established to manage this.
One of the new weapons on show when Brave1 was officially launched is of particular interest from a navy perspective. It is a small robotic submarine, the Toloka TLK-150 maritime drone.
The Ukrainian government is doing its best to both harness this creativity, and bring it together in an efficient and coordinated way. A new group, Brave1, has recently been established to manage this.
One of the new weapons on show when Brave1 was officially launched is of particular interest from a navy perspective. It is a small robotic submarine, the Toloka TLK-150 maritime drone.
Taking The Fight To The Russian Navy
Ukraine has already enjoyed significant strategic success pushing the Russian Navy, who initially dominated the northern Black Sea, into a defensive posture. The threat of anti-ship missiles, like the ones which sunk the cruiser Moskva, have pushed the Russian Navy back over the horizon. And innovative weaponized uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) have helped keep them penned up in their ports.
But the resulting void in the northern Black Sea is far from being a Ukrainian lake. The Russians can still operate there to launch missiles, or to support ground operations if the need arrives. And Ukrainian vessels, even the small USVs, can be picked off by Russian aircraft. So it is perhaps natural that Ukraine is developing robotic submarines, known formally as uncrewed underwater vehicle (UUV).
But the resulting void in the northern Black Sea is far from being a Ukrainian lake. The Russians can still operate there to launch missiles, or to support ground operations if the need arrives. And Ukrainian vessels, even the small USVs, can be picked off by Russian aircraft. So it is perhaps natural that Ukraine is developing robotic submarines, known formally as uncrewed underwater vehicle (UUV).
The TLK-150 is the first indigenous UUV revealed.
- The design is unconventional, showing its homegrown nature. It has larger stabilizers than other UUVs and much wider spaces propulsors (propellers).
- This may not be a bad thing, and it shows that it is not a mere copy of anything going before.
- This small weapon complements the now famous uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) which already threaten the Russian Navy in its main base at Sevastopol.
Design Of The New Maritime Drone
Ukraine has recently acquired some UUVs from Western governments.
- These are principally to support mine clearing efforts and include 6 supplied via the United Kingdom.
- Some of this knowhow may have transferred to the new type, although the design and technology will be completely separate.
There is a very tall mast with cameras and communications devices. The keel may be to balance this mast.
- It is possible that this can be used as a periscope for intelligence gathering missions close to the enemy shore. It might also allow ‘human in the loop’ navigation and aiming to carry out attacks.
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