Maritime battlespace is growing, needs innovations: Weapons and Warfare

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

HELLO AND WELCOME TO WEAPONS AND WARFARE, FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS I’M YOUR HOST RYAN ROBERTSON, AND THIS WEEK WE’RE GETTING A LITTLE NAUTICAL. 

AS THE NATURE OF THREATS AGAINST AMERICA’S INTERESTS CONTINUES TO EVOLVE, SO TOO ARE THE TOOLS THAT WILL BE NEEDED IN POTENTIAL CONFLICTS. 

THIS WEEK WE’RE TAKING A LOOK AT A SCOTTISH  COMPANY BUILDING WATERCRAFT WITH SPECIAL OPERATIONS IN MIND…BY BLENDING THE OLD WITH THE NEW. WHILE AN ICELANDIC STARTUP IS WORKING ON TECH THAT CAN SAVE WEAR AND TEAR ON OPERATORS WHILE KEEPING THEM OUT OF HARM’S WAY AND CUTTING COSTS AT THE SAME TIME.

AND OUR WEAPON OF THE WEEK IS READY TO TAKE THE PLUNGE, GIVING USERS A LOOK AT POTENTIAL BATTLE SPACES 1,000 FEET BELOW THE SURFACE.

BUT FIRST, SOME HEADLINES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED.

A SENIOR UKRAINIAN MILITARY OFFICER SAYS THEY MAY KEEP SOME OF THE F-16 FIGHTER JETS THEY’RE SET TO RECEIVE FROM THEIR WESTERN ALLIES AT FOREIGN BASES TO PROTECT THEM FROM RUSSIAN STRIKES. 

BELGIUM, DENMARK, THE NETHERLANDS AND NORWAY HAVE COMMITTED TO PROVIDING UKRAINE WITH MORE THAN 60 U.S.-MADE F-16s TO HELP IT FEND OFF RUSSIAN ATTACKS. 

THE HEAD OF AVIATION WITHIN UKRAINE’S AIR FORCE, SAID THAT “A CERTAIN NUMBER OF AIRCRAFT WILL BE STORED AT SECURE AIR BASES OUTSIDE OF UKRAINE SO THAT THEY ARE NOT TARGETED HERE.” THE HERE MEANING UKRAINE.  

BRIGADIER GENERAL SERHIY HOLUBTSOV TOLD THE U.S. GOVERNMENT-FUNDED RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY THAT THOSE F-16S COULD BE USED TO REPLACE DAMAGED AIRCRAFT AS THEY UNDERGO REPAIRS AS WELL AS FOR TRAINING UKRAINIAN PILOTS ABROAD.…

THE WITHDRAWAL OF U.S. FORCES FROM NIGER STARTED EARLIER THIS MONTH WITH THE DEPARTURE OF A U.S. AIR FORCE C-17 FROM AIR BASE 101 IN NIAMEY. 

IN APRIL NIGER’S RULING JUNTA TOLD THE U.S. TO WITHDRAW ALL TROOPS FROM THE COUNTRY.

 UNTIL A COUP LAST YEAR… NIGER HAD BEEN A KEY PARTNER IN WASHINGTON’S FIGHT AGAINST INSURGENTS IN THE SAHEL REGION OF AFRICA, WHO HAVE KILLED THOUSANDS AND DISPLACED MILLIONS MORE.

IN MAY PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY MAJOR GENERAL PAT RYDER TALKED ABOUT THE DOD’S PLAN FOR LEAVING THE AFRICAN NATION.

[Major General Pat Ryder, Pentagon Press Secretary]

“We’re going to continue to consult with the Nigerians in terms of the orderly withdrawal of U.S. forces, we’re going to continue to stay engaged with the partners in the region when it comes to terrorism and countering the terrorist threat. Because, again, you know, I think we all collectively can work together to address those very real threats. But we also respect the sovereignty of countries that we work with.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

THE UNITED STATES AND NIGER HAD SIGNED AN AGREEMENT FOR THE “ORDERLY AND SAFE” WITHDRAWAL OF US TROOPS FROM NIGERIEN TERRITORY BY SEPTEMBER 15th.

AND FINALLY, TALK ABOUT AN “OBJECTS IN MIRROR MAY BE LARGER THAN THEY APPEAR” MOMENT. THIS IS A SWISS MILITARY F-18 LANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FOUR-LANE A-1 FREEWAY NEAR BERN, SWITZERLAND EARLIER THIS MONTH. FORTUNATELY FOR MOTORISTS, THIS WAS A PLANNED EXERCISE. THAT’S BECAUSE  MANY OF THE COUNTRY’S MOTORWAYS WERE BUILT DURING THE COLD WAR WITH SPECIAL SECTIONS DESIGNED TO WITHSTAND AN EMERGENCY AIRCRAFT LANDING. SWISS OFFICIALS SAID THE TEST WAS PROMPTED BY RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE AND THE RETURN OF WAR TO EUROPE. WITH JUST THREE AIR BASES IN A COUNTRY OF LESS THAN NINE MILLION PEOPLE, MILITARY OFFICIALS WANT TO MAKE SURE THEY’RE STILL ABLE TO OPERATE IF SOMETHING WERE TO HAPPEN TO ANY OF THEIR MILITARY INSTALLATIONS.

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[RYAN ROBERTSON]

EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN… WOULD IT SURPRISE YOU TO KNOW THAT PHRASE ITSELF WAS WRITTEN BY AN AUTHOR WHO DIED NEARLY THREE CENTURIES AGO. AND YET, IT STILL RINGS TRUE TODAY. PERHAPS NO MORE SO THAN WHEN IT COMES TO MARITIME WARFARE.

YOU DON’T HAVE TO LOOK BEYOND TODAY’S HEADLINES TO KNOW THE OPEN WATERS OF THE WORLD WILL LIKELY PLAY A LARGE ROLE IN AMERICA’S NEXT CONFLICT.

ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS UNDERSTAND WHAT’S HAPPENING WITH THE IRANIAN-BACKED HOUTHI REBELS IN THE RED SEA.

OR UKRAINE AND RUSSIA SQUARING OFF IN THE BLACK SEA.

AND OF COURSE THERE’S CHINA AND ITS AMBITIONS WHEN IT COMES TO TAIWAN. 

AS WE’VE REPORTED BEFORE ON ‘WEAPONS AND WARFARE’ AMERICAN SHIPBUILDING IS AT A MARKED DISADVANTAGE RIGHT NOW WHEN IT COMES TO UNCLE SAM’S NEAR-PEER ADVERSARIES. AND WHILE LEADERSHIP IS WORKING TO CHANGE THAT, IT’S NOT A PROBLEM THAT’S EASILY SOLVED. 

[Adm. Lisa Marie Franchetti, USN Chief of Naval Operations]

“You can see there are the demand signals for the larger Navy that we have out there. We have  88 ships under contract. We have 66 under construction there’s 57 if you look across the fit-up. We know we need a larger Navy. Every study since 2016 has shown that, and I think the most effective way to work on that right now is to invest in our industrial base.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

ALL OF THAT MAKES MARITIME INNOVATION INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. FORTUNATELY, SEVERAL DEFENSE CONTRACTORS ARE BRINGING NEW AND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THE TABLE. 

COMPANIES LIKE JFD WITH THEIR TACTICAL DIVING VEHICLES AND HEFRING MARINE’S A-I DRIVEN SOFTWARE HAVE IDENTIFIED A NEED, AND ARE WORKING TO DELIVER THEIR PRODUCTS TO OPERATORS IN NEED OF THEIR EXPERTISE.

WHILE THEIR CARRIER SEAL AND SHADOW SEAL MAY LOOK LIKE SOMETHING STRAIGHT FROM A JAMES BOND MOVIE, THERE’S NOTHING FICTIONAL ABOUT THEM. 

[Matt Harman, Head of Tactical Diving Vehicles, JDF]

“They are designed to take people into an area discreetly, without, you know, any sort of degree of detection. And you know, the quieter and the more, the more sneaky you can do that the better. ”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

EQUIP PED FOR A CREW OF EIGHT, THE CARRIER SEAL CAN CARRY OUT OVER THE HORIZON MISSIONS. 

WITH A SURFACE CRUISING SPEED OF 30 KNOTS, WHICH IS A LITTLE LESS THAN 35 MILES PER HOUR, AND A SUBSURFACE SPEED OF FIVE KNOTS, THE CARRIER CAN NOT ONLY DELIVER OPERATORS AND THEIR EQUIPMENT, IT CAN ALSO BE USED FOR SURVEILLANCE, TARGET ACQUISITION, AND RECONNAISSANCE OPERATIONS.

[Matt Harman, Head of Tactical Diving Vehicles, JDF]  

“So you’re scooping out where you might be taking in a troop or a beach landing, simply keeping an eye on the enemy, understanding what they’re up to, or they might be doing, looking for sensors, you know, detecting what other sort of electronic warfare type signals might be out there, through to actually delivering a team who are effectively leading a mission.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

FOR MISSIONS A LITTLE SMALLER IN SCOPE, THE SHADOW FITS THAT BILL. BUILT FOR A CREW OF FOUR IT’S CAPABLE OF OPERATING AT NEARLY 80 FEET BELOW THE SURFACE AND, MUCH LIKE THE CARRIER VERSION, CAN EVEN BE DEPLOYED BY PARACHUTE. 

[Matt Harman, Head of Tactical Diving Vehicles, JDF]

“The Shadow Seal, you can see over my shoulder here is a direct reproduction of the original commando sleeping beauty that was that was designed by the British in the Second World War, just with massive steroids, you know, it’s like huge range, much more sensors, all the all the crazy, you know, comms kits, and cameras, and all that sort of stuff that you’d expect. So it’s fully electric. And it goes out of a long way. And it goes very quietly.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

BUT WHAT ABOUT GETTING THE MOST OUT OF VESSELS THAT ARE ALREADY IN SERVICE? THAT’S WHERE HEFRING MARINE COMES IN. THE ICELANDIC START-UP BROUGHT THEIR INTELLIGENT MARINE ASSISTANCE SYSTEM, ALSO KNOWN AS IMAS TO SOF WEEK 2024. 

[Karl Birgir Björnsson, CEO & Co-Founder, Hefring Marine]

“This box here is a computer that will essentially connect to all instruments on board will connect to the engines on board and connect to the navigation systems, weather station, any sensors. But then we also place our own sensor, which is inertial measurement units that will capture the full range of motions of the vessel in real-time.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

BUT IT’S WHAT HEFRING’S TECH CAN DO WITH THE DATA THAT MAKES IT AN INTRIGUING OPTION FOR OPERATORS. USING REAL-TIME INFORMATION, THEIR A-I MODEL CAN FACTOR IN EVERYTHING THAT’S HAPPENING AROUND THE BOAT TO OPTIMIZE THE PILOT’S SPEED FOR MAXIMUM FUEL EFFICIENCY. HEFRING SAYS THEIR DATA SHOWS ITS FUEL-OPTIMIZED SPEED GUIDANCE AND ANALYSIS CAN REDUCE FUEL CONSUMPTION BY UP TO 25%.

[Karl Birgir Björnsson, CEO & Co-Founder, Hefring Marine]

“At a certain point, going faster, that extra knot that you’re trying to go, will start costing quite a lot in fuel consumption. And it’s sometimes and usually, it’s not really worth it. Whether you’re doing 32 knots or 34 knots might not matter that much for the mission profile in general. But it will matter quite a bit for your fuel consumption. And so the model that’s on board here is continuously trying to figure out what does that curve look like? In real time based on the environment that you’re operating in right now based on how the vessel is moving what the engines are doing in order to react to that?”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

THE NEXT PART OF THE IMAS EQUATION IS PASSENGER SAFETY. NOT ONLY HELPING PILOTS ADJUST COURSE FOR BAD WEATHER, KEEPING THE CRAFT AND CREW OUT OF HARM’S WAY, BUT OPTIMIZING SPEED TO MAKE FOR A SMOOTHER RIDE. MINIMIZING RIDE IMPACT FOR THOSE ON BOARD.

{Karl Birgir Björnsson, CEO & Co-Founder, Hefring Marine}

“There was a US Marine Corps, or former US Marine Corps guy who’s here yesterday, completely sold on what we’re doing here, because he recognizes the need for it. So 23 years old, when he started out on high-speed boats and at the US Marine Corps. And today, at 45, realizes how big of an impact that had on his body being out there being exposed to the environment being exposed to the heavy impacts that happen out there when you do in high speed, and you’re jumping off a wave consistently. Now, as a, you know, injured back, bad knees, it takes its toll on people.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

NO WORD YET FROM HEFRING ON ANY DEALS WITHIN THE DOD, BUT IN THE LAST SIX MONTHS THEY HAVE REACHED AGREEMENTS WITH THE ICELANDIC ASSOCIATION FOR SEARCH AND RESCUE, SAFE BOATS INTERNATIONAL AND SECURED A NEW ROUND OF FUNDING OF MORE THAN TWO MILLION EUROS. 

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[RYAN ROBERTSON]

TIME NOW FOR OUR WEAPON OF THE WEEK AND WE’RE STICKING WITH THE NAUTICAL THEME. IF YOU CRACKED OPEN A BOOK IN MIDDLE SCHOOL YOU LIKELY KNOW THAT 71% OF THE EARTH IS COVERED BY WATER. WHAT YOU MAY NOT KNOW IS THAT WE’VE ONLY EXPLORED ABOUT 5% OF THOSE WATERS. THAT’S WHERE BLUEYE ROBOTICS COMES IN. 

THIS IS THE X3 ROV, OR REMOTELY OPERATED VEHICLE. ON THE MARKET SINCE 2021, THE X3 HAS A PROVEN TRACK RECORD.  

IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN IT BEFORE, YOU’VE LIKELY SEEN THE RESULTS OF ITS CAPABILITIES. IN 2022 THE NORD STREAM 1 AND 2 GAS PIPELINES IN THE BALTIC SEA WERE BLOWN UP. AT 260 FEET BELOW THE SURFACE IT WAS TOO DEEP FOR DIVERS TO INSPECT THE DAMAGE, BUT NOT THE X3, WHICH WAS USED TO GET A CLOSE LOOK AT THE DAMAGE DONE. 

[James Nixon, International Sales Manager, Blueye Robotics]

“We feel it’s incumbent upon those of us that have access to the sea to provide that information to the world. So once we had the clearance to go to that space, we provided that video and information to the world so they can make their own decision about what happened.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

NOT ONLY CAN THIS ROV PROVIDE AMAZING IMAGES, BUT IT’S ALSO BUILT TO BE USER-FRIENDLY. THE CONTROLLER OFFERS A LARGE SCREEN WITH EASY-TO-USE FEATURES. IF YOU’VE PLAYED HANDHELD VIDEO GAMES, ODDS ARE YOU CAN OPERATE THE X3.

[James Nixon, International Sales Manager, BlueEye Robotics]

“We believe that if it’s easy and dependable, you’ll use it. And that’s our ultimate goal is to have folks doing the job that they would normally do but doing it in a safer and or more efficient manner.”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

CAPABLE OF REACHING DEPTHS OF 1,000 FEET THE X-3 CAN BE FITTED WITH AN ARRAY OF TOOLS. FROM LIGHTS TO SONAR TO A GRIPPER JUST TO NAME A FEW. 

[James Nixon, International Sales Manager, BlueEye Robotics]

“The future for us is integration of more and better accessories and sensors into this platform. So we’ve integrated grippers and sonars and cathodic potential measurement tools and metal thickness tools. The future for us is developing and integrating more tools into this device. And then as our technology roadmap grows, to maybe change the form factor to make it a little more capable in different scenarios. ”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

BASED OUT OF TRONDHEIM, NORWAY, BLUEYE IS ALREADY MAKING A BIG SPLASH, PUN INTENDED, WITH USERS ALL OVER THE WORLD. WITH 1,100 UNITS OPERATING IN 60 COUNTRIES THEY NOW THEY HAVE THIER SIGHTS SET ON PUTTING THEIR TOOLS IN THE HANDS OF THE AMERICAN MILITARY. 

[James Nixon, International Sales Manager, BlueEye Robotics]

“Norway is a relatively small country have five and a half million people. But the technology that they produce is well above its weight class. And so for us, bringing the best of breed to the United States military is our mission, it is to bring a highly portable, highly capable robot to the men and women who need it the most. ”

[RYAN ROBERTSON]

ONE THING THAT’S LIKELY TO MAKE THIS AN ATTRACTIVE OPTION FOR POTENTIAL BUYERS, PRICE. WITH BASE MODELS STARTING AT A LITTLE LESS THAN 22K, IT’S A RELATIVELY LOW-COST OPTION FOR OPERATORS WITH A NEED TO KNOW WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE WATERS AROUND THEM. 

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[RYAN ROBERTSON]

TIME NOW FOR COMMS CHECK AND WE HAVE AN UPDATE ON A PROJECT WE FIRST TOLD YOU ABOUT IN OUR MAY 1st EPISODE. 

BELL TEXTRON AND AURORA FLIGHT SCIENCES WERE CHOSEN BY THE DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY, ALSO KNOWN AS DARPA, TO CONTINUE  THE DESIGN OF A NEW EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT, THE X-PLANE, UNDER ITS SPEED AND RUNWAY INDEPENDENT TECHNOLOGIES, OR SPRINT, PROGRAM. 

BELL’S UNMANNED V-247 VIGILANT WAS OUR WEAPON OF THE WEEK IN MAY. THE TILT-ROTOR CONCEPT AIRCRAFT IS DESIGNED TO TRAVEL AT MORE THAN 300 KNOTS PER HOUR AND WILL BE CAPABLE OF CARRYING UP TO 9,000 POUNDS OF EQUIPMENT. 

AURORA TOUTS THEIR CONCEPT AS A LOW-DRAG, FAN-IN-WING EFFORT COMBINING A BLENDED WING BODY THAT’S CAPABLE OF VERTICAL TAKE-OFF AND LANDING WITH UNPRECEDENTED SPEED. 

THE GOAL OF THE SPRINT PROGRAM IS TO CREATE A CRAFT THAT COMBINES HIGH SPEED WITHOUT THE NEED FOR A RUNWAY. SOMETHING MILITARY LEADERSHIP SAYS IS NEEDED FOR THE EVOLVING NATURE OF COMBAT.

THE TWO PROGRAMS WILL CONDUCT PHASE 1-B PRELIMINARY DESIGN WORK OVER THE NEXT YEAR.

COMPETITORS NORTHROP GRUMMAN AND PIASECKI AIRCRAFT CORP. WERE NOT CHOSEN TO MOVE FORWARD.

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[RYAN ROBERTSON]

ALRIGHT FOLKS….WE’RE JUST ABOUT OUT OF TIME FOR THIS EPISODE OF WEAPONS AND WARFARE…HOPE YOU ENJOYED OUR NAUTICALLY THEMED PRESENTATION THIS WEEK.

AND WE’RE GOING TO KEEP IT GOING BECAUSE WE CAN’T DO A SHOW ABOUT SEA-FARING TECH AND ME NOT SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THE ROLE OCEANS PLAYED IN THIS COUNTRY’S DEVELOPMENT.

FOR STARTERS, OCEANS ARE GREAT FOR INDUSTRY BECAUSE THEY MAKE THE TRANSFER OF GOODS RELATIVELY EASY AND CHEAP…NOT TO MENTION POSSIBLE WHEN IT COMES TO MOST INTERNATIONAL TRADE. 

BUT OCEANS ARE ALSO VITAL PARTS TO A NATIONAL DEFENSE PLAN–AT LEAST FOR COUNTRIES WITH ACCESS TO OPEN OCEANS. 

NOW, I’M NOT A GEOLOGIST OR CARTOGRAPHER… BUT I DO KNOW THE UNITED STATES IS BORDERED BY TWO OCEANS…LAST I RECALL, THERE WAS ONE ON EACH SIDE. 

AND FOR A HAIR LONGER THAN TWO CENTURIES, THOSE OCEANS KEPT THE UNITED STATES INSULATED FROM MOST OF THE WARS AND CONFLICTS AROUND THE WORLD…ALLOWING THE U.S. THE ABILITY TO MORE OR LESS DECIDE WHAT CONFLICTS IT ENTERS AND WHEN…AS WELL AS WHEN TO LEAVE.   

WHEN COMBINED WITH THE OVERWHELMING MIGHT, POWER, AND CAPACITY OF THE U-S MILITARY–THOSE OCEANS MAKE IT VIRTUALLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR ANY INVADING FORCE TO GET A FOOTHOLD IN THE U.S. …OR REALLY NORTH AMERICA…LET ALONE LAUNCH A FULL INVASION OF THE CONTINENT. 

ARMIES OFTEN SAY GEOGRAPHY IS DESTINY…AND IF THAT’S TRUE…THEN THE UNITED STATES WAS ALWAYS DESTINED TO BE A NATION SET APART. AT LEAST UP TO THIS POINT IN OUR HISTORY…

IN THE CONFLICTS AND WARS WE’RE SEEING TODAY–WHICH WILL IMPACT AND INFORM THE ONES WE’LL SEE TOMORROW–THE CYBER AND SPACE DOMAINS ARE QUICKLY BECOMING JUST AS VITAL TO CONTROL AS THE LAND, AIR AND SEA DOMAINS. MOST ADVANCED TECH IN USE BY MODERN MILITARIES RELIES ON SOME FORM OF SPACE-BASED COMMUNICATION. 

IF CONTROL OF THE SEAS LED TO MORE THAN TWO CENTURIES OF RELATIVE PEACE ON THE HOMEFRONT FOR THE UNITED STATES–

YOU CAN JUST IMAGINE HOW HIGH THE STAKES ARE FOR CONTROL OF BOTH THE SPACE AND CYBER DOMAINS…AND HOW DIFFERENT THINGS MIGHT LOOK IF COUNTRIES LIKE CHINA OR RUSSIA WERE ABLE TO DICTATE THE NEXT CENTURY OF OUR SPECIES’ EXPANSION. 

FOR SENIOR PRODUCER BRETT BAKER, VIDEO EDITOR BRIAN SPENCER AND GRAPHICS DESIGNER DAKOTA PITEO… I’M RYAN ROBERTSON WITH STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS, SIGNING OFF.