Amid all the recent talk about the need for U.S. Navy minesweepers in the Persian Gulf in case Iran attempts to close the straight of Hormuz with sea mines, I noticed an interesting fact about China’s minesweeping plans. They involve drones. Not sleek, purpose-built, sea-going drones, but vessels originally designed to carry people that have been quickly converted to be remotely operated from an anti-mining mothership.
These pics show what China Defense Blog claims are Chinese navy minesweeping drones based on the Type 529 patrol craft. If you look closely you can see what appears to be orange, remotely controlled submersibles mounted on the sterns of the boats. The vessels may be controlled by the 818 Kunshan minesweeping ship that’s shown docked with the small patrol vessels below.
Click through the jump for more pictures.
{ 32 comments… read them below or add one }
The German navy has used trios of mine-breaking drones for decades; the Troika system.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ensdorf_class_minesw…
Hmm… clever.
Are you sure the orange things are ROVs? They could just be old fashioned mechanical sweeps, or towed noise-makers
The "boats" are remotely operated
I was referring to the objects described in the article as "(appearing) to be orange, remotely controlled submersibles mounted on the sterns of the boats"
If we were referring to the Iranian suspected remote controlled bomb boats we probably just needed a powerful remote control to get control frequency control of the Iranian remote controlled bomb boats in any future face off/ conflict events with them (Iran).
I wonder how else a military could save money by re-purposing older ships.
Well if they made a mistake and miss a mine which hits the boat well no problems they're all drones. LOL
Well played comrades, challenge accepted
Just reinstate all retired p boats and minesweepers and refurbish it.
I am sure the US Navy will follow suit.
As soon as it gets its head out of its a#S.
What annoys me is this is was so obviously the way to go five years ago…..
If they can make a car go through a deserted town with other cars and stop signs (DARPA challenge), I am pretty sure they could make a couple boats do remote anti-sub, anti-mine and radar extension in the middle of the ocean……
Makes it so a destroyer or cruiser can be in four spots at once.
Maybe we can send some Navy people to China and see how our University educated grad students are doing it over there…….
The Chinese have it right..
Instead of investing millions into designing a new system. Reuse old equipment destined for the graveyard.
Saves money, and puts people to work.
No different to turning old fighters into target drones – something the USAF has been doing for decades.
Doesn't stop it being a good idea, though.
Good Evening Folks,
This must be a joke, right. The Chinese are this dumb, this looks like something that an "American Think Tank" would think up.
All one of those sneaky Americans have to do is put counters on our mines and wait for the tender to pass over, Ka-Booom.
Then with out controllers you have all these radio controlled boats running around. now that would be funny.
ALLONS,
Byron Skinner
so your saying the mothership is going be running around in mined waters, even though it controls multiple remote controlled minesweeper drones. good thinking.
The issue is assuming that the first mine you encounter is the outer perimeter of the mine field. And if you hit a mixed mine field with CAPTOR mines, life gets interesting.
What is the range of teleoperation from ship to drone?
As the US can operate predator drones anywhere on the planet from stateside bases, I believe it would be reasonable to assume that "drone" boats can be operated at great distances too. Its not like the Chinese don't launch their own communication satellites, now is it?
It's probable they have their own Creed AFB by now, but there's a lot we don't know about their ROV infrastructure.
I imagine their priority is to get their Beidou up and running. Having RPVs running around but having their precision operation depend on Galileo, Glonass or GPS? Beidou has three satellites up and running, but I imagine the PRC would prefer to get that infrastructure up and running as soon as possible.
Alternatively, if RQ-170 went down then it validates for them that UAVs aren't the end-all, especially when teleoperated at the end of several thousand miles of satellite bandwidth.
Beidou puts a coordinate boundary on where they can reliably expect their UAVs to work with great precision: at least until the next-gen globally-positioned Beidou constellation is online. Beidou-1 is geostationary and well-suited for regional guidance.
Considering that Beidou is based on the DFH's…one wonders if the Beidous can also do teleoperation.
So you want a first ship safe policy? Suppose the first ship over is a Chinese guided missile cruiser?
got to give credit for the damn Chinese, if it was the USA, we would have spent 5 time what they spent and it will only be a little better.
More like 20 times the amount spent with one tenth of what the Chinese have got to show for it. The Chinese are eating Americca alive thanks to Americas inbuilt stupidity and complacency. Its very amusing to wath.
forgive my ignorance but isn't this similar in idea to something we the british have, carried on the minesweeper 'mothership'? http://defense-update.com/20111208_sea-fox-naval-…
the last line of the linked articles suggests following its use in libya other navies are buying it, presumably nato.
cheers!
Now Xi shake hands with Barrack perhaps they (China) will sell their ships and boats for a penny's on the dollar to us…(kidding)
I bet they won't be dumb enough to make ther drones hackable, unlike a certain other failing nation…
We probably need a universal remote.
Sirry Amelicans! You never buird nice good cheap ship rike dis! Ha ha ha ha. We have too many mines! Ha ha ha ha
Why not a static generator to scramble the signal n the way to the drones? Beam it in their direction. An old Ford ignition coil would be a good place to build on.
I’m sure a sacrambler could be easily be built if not done already. Just mix their signal up.
I wonder whose mines the Chinese expect to clear? Surely not the non existent US sub launched mobile mines that might otherwise threaten their harbors!
shave down some of the some times decades long procurment process the navy uses and use some of the mothballed fleet for some thing productive for once
With a billion people who needs drones?
Digging through the ether, apparently we had a drone mothership for our Firebees. I wonder why we don't have field motherships anymore…