Unmanned #USNavy vessels make #Japan debut

The U.S. Navy has for the first time dispatched two of its medium-sized unmanned prototype vessels to Yokosuka Naval Base as it prepares to increase both the number and use of multidomain drones in the #IndoPacific region amid growing tensions with #China

Formally known as unmanned surface vessels, the autonomous Mariner and Ranger arrived at Yokosuka, home to the U.S. Seventh Fleet, on Monday as part of a long-range deployment that began last month at their home port just north of Los Angeles.

The Pacific crossing, the first-ever by U.S. Navy unmanned ships, was made with a small crew on board as the vessels are still test platforms.

The move was also part of an ongoing multidomain capabilities exercise aimed at testing, developing and evaluating the integration of unmanned platforms into wider fleet operations, alongside allies and partners.

Both Mariner and Ranger are part of a fleet of currently five prototype USVs under the Navy's Unmanned Surface Vessel Division One that have been used to test a range of capabilities, including surface and subsurface combat, surveillance and reconnaissance, command and control, and intelligence gathering.

For instance, in 2021 Ranger was used to launch an SM-6 air-defense and anti-ship missile from an on-deck battery controlled by personnel on another ship.

The main purpose of these prototypes is to help the Navy accelerate the delivery of capable and reliable unmanned systems that can be operated remotely, semi- or fully autonomously, by figuring out how best to use them within the broader fleet.

“Our approach is focused on integrating, exercising and refining tactics, techniques and procedures for immediate application into real-world operations with the fleet” said Division One Cmdr. Jeremiah Daley.

The USV deployment comes as maritime drones take part in increasingly complex naval exercises. Before arriving in Yokosuka, for instance, the two USVs participated in training maneuvers in the Pacific where they helped expand the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group’s maritime domain awareness.

Last year, several drone vessels made their debut at the multinational Rim of the Pacific exercise, which also saw the Sea Hunter and Sea Hawk USVs each paired with a destroyer to demonstrate manned-unmanned teaming at sea.

Unmanned systems are becoming increasingly important for Indo-Pacific navies. Not only are they cheaper to operate, they can also be deployed in risk-prone areas. At the same time, they can minimize human losses while substantially expanding the warfighting capabilities available to commanders, which is why they are often referred to as force multipliers.

Technological advancements in digitization, communications and artificial intelligence have resulted in these systems being increasingly adopted by all major Indo-Pacific navies, including Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force and China's People's Liberation Army Navy, the latter of which is also known for testing and developing a range of unmanned vessels.

However, this is happening unevenly, as naval requirements and operating environments differ drastically within the region.

Timothy Heath, a defense researcher at Rand Corp., says that the recent USV deployment to Japan not only reflects how fast unmanned systems have matured but also the Navy’s interest in building a fleet with both manned and unmanned platforms. “This could provide greater flexibility in operating ships in the Pacific Ocean,” Heath said.

The U.S. Navy has a plan for about 40% of its fleet to be comprised of unmanned systems by the middle of this century.

“These will be able to do almost everything that current-generation manned vessels do, but at a lower cost,” said John Bradford, a naval expert and former country director for Japan at the Office of the U.S. Defense Secretary.

“They could scout dangerously close to enemy formations, carry forces and equipment through a blockade, or serve as remote-firing batteries” he said.

At the same time, these assets are expected to be a critical component of the Navy’s distributed maritime operations (DMO).

The strategy, Bradford said, is aimed at increasing the combat effectiveness of coordinated units by dispersing fleet forces over large areas to deceive and confuse an adversary. This will not only make naval units harder to locate, and thus to neutralize, but also increase the force’s lethality through multidirectional, coordinated attacks.

This is also the view of Rear Adm. Blake Converse, deputy commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, who described unmanned and autonomous technologies as “key to growing our distributed maritime operations framework.” “By proliferating our presence in the Pacific and increasing the fleet’s situational awareness and lethality, we give ourselves more options to make better decisions at all levels of leadership,” the admiral added.

The value of DMO is particularly important for Japan, Bradford said, as Tokyo thinks about options to defend itself in a scenario such as a conflict that starts in the East China Sea or Taiwan Strait.

“With today’s missile ranges, such a conflict would likely extend throughout the Japanese archipelago and into the Philippine Sea,” the expert said, noting that for the U.S. and Japan to improve joint operations, they will also need to cooperate on unmanned systems.

“If they are going to maintain this capability as they transition to hybrid manned/unmanned fleets, they will need to train these systems together as they come online,” Bradford said.

Heath agrees, noting that unmanned assets that integrate with U.S. systems could allow commanders from both countries to coordinate operations more easily.

For example, he said, commanders could assign groups of U.S. and Japanese unmanned vessels to various tasks or move them as a group to designated areas.

“Without integration, it would be much harder to command and coordinate the ships,” he said.

While the U.S Navy is at the cutting edge of unmanned technologies, its push to test and integrate unmanned systems into the fleet is also linked to growing concerns in the U.S., Japan and like-minded countries about China's rapidly expanding military capabilities.

In fact, to counter China’s military advantage in personnel and manned equipment and deter a potential invasion of Taiwan, the Pentagon unveiled last month a new strategy aimed at deploying a vast network of low-cost, autonomous drones across multiple domains within 18 to 24 months.
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