Tuesday, February 19, 2019

The Chinese Navy Wants Robot Warships

Company representatives say China has a working prototype of the JARI USV, which is equipped like a mini DDG, but details beyond that are scant. (Photo by David B. Larter)

Defense News: China is working on killer robot ships of its own

ABU DHABI –The Chinese shipbuilder China Shipbuilding and Offshore International Company is developing a small unmanned surface vessel that China wants to function essentially like the uninhabited baby brother of a U.S. Arleigh Burke destroyer.

The JARI USV is a 20-ton, 15-meter boat that is orders of magnitude smaller than the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s manned Type -55 destroyer but has all the same mission areas: anti-submarine, anti-surface and anti-air warfare.

A model of the drone was on display at the International Defense Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi.

'The JARI comes equipped with electro-optical sensor atop a superstructure, a phased array radar, a dipping sonar, eight small vertical launch system cells, a torpedo launcher and a forward mounted machine gun and rocket launcher for counter-surface engagements, according to a model displayed at the International Defense Exhibition and Conference.

Read more ....

Update: The Next Chinese Naval Threat: Robot Warships? (David Axe, National Interest)

WNU Editor: The U.S. Navy is also building up its robot fleet .... The U.S. Navy Just Bought Four Giant Boeing Robot Submarines (February 15, 2019).

No comments: