UK new maritime drone sets 50-plus-day endurance goal
Photo: A marine drone with an operational range of over 50 days has been developed in the UK (zerousv.com)
ZeroUSV has unveiled its Oceanus17-class surface drone, named Lady of the Lake, and will send it to NATO training exercises as early as next week, according to Defence Blog.
Oceanus17 was built by Manor Marine at its shipyard in Portland and represents an evolution of ZeroUSV's Oceanus12 platform, which the company launched about a year earlier.
ZeroUSV states that the new class of maritime drones has a payload capacity of up to 4 metric tons, an operational range exceeding 50 days, and a maximum speed approaching 15 knots. The drone features a large payload compartment.
A marine drone with an endurance of over 50 days has been developed in the UK
"Just over a year ago Zero USV was launching the first Oceanus12 class USV, and 15 months on the results of being able to iterate at pace are clear for all to see, from design through to construction in such a short timeframe demonstrates ZeroUSV ability to deliver at pace," says Matthew Ratsey, Managing Director of ZeroUSV.
Oceanus17 uses GuardianAI autonomous navigation software from MarineAI. ZeroUSV describes the drone’s autonomy as Level 4 autonomous navigation.
According to Navy Lookout, the sensor suite for this class includes an X-band radar, HD daytime cameras, an Airmar weather station, and communications are provided via Starlink Marine, 4G and 5G channels, as well as an Iridium satellite connection through Thales Vesselink.
A maritime drone with an endurance of over 50 days has been developed in the UK
Ukraine recently received Swedish Giraffe radar systems from Saab. These stations are capable of detecting cruise missiles, aircraft, and drones at ranges of up to 100 kilometers, and can also track targets on the water's surface.
TAF Industries has begun production of the Octopus-100 interceptor drone. The new design is intended to destroy Russian Shahed jet drones and other high-speed aerial targets in the face of enemy electronic warfare.
