NAVY Eyes Autonomous Water Sensor Drones to detect Sub Threats

David Larter reported on Defensenews.com that The U.S. Navy is receiving proposals for an autonomous glider drone that can collect ocean water data in order to improve how it detects enemy submarines.   The glider will be a next-gen Littoral Battlespace Sensing Glider and will measure water conditions in areas relevant to fleet operational planning. The drone would “operate for 90 days at a time, dive to depths of up to 200 meters – or 657 feet – and take a sample every 2 seconds,” according to information posted on the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command’s website. It would be able to loiter on the bottom, then surface and transmit data via iridium satellites or a line-of-site datalink. A NAVY RFP illustration depicts envisioned sensor drone operations; NAVY photo shows current generation NAVY autonomous water gliders.

Thanks to CDR David Place (USN/Ret), davidplace47[at]gmail[dot]com, and Robin E. Alexander, President ATC, alexander technical[at]gmail[dot]com, for their assistance with this report, the background for which appeared in their  # 21 - 4 - 20 FEBRUARY 2021 edition of the UNMANNED SYSTEMS NEWS (USN).

David distributes the USN, a free, comprehensive newsletter in PDF format every week or two, as well as serial news flashes, from which this NREF news update was sourced. To be included in his distribution, simply send David a subscribe request to davidplace47[at]gmail[dot]com.