Bulletin of ”Carol I” National Defence University 10.12753/2284-9378-20-38 THE OPPORTUNITY FOR USING REMOTELY OPERATED UNDERWATER VEHICLES IN SUPPORT OF NAVAL ACTIONS Capt. (Navy) Assoc.Prof. Lucian Valeriu SCIPANOV, PhD* Capt. (Navy) Denis DOLCEANU** There is an international trend for research and development programs aiming to provide fleets with modern combat systems. Remotely piloted underwater vehicles represent a capability that occupies an important place in the concerns of the naval forces, so they have experienced an evolutionary stage with a great technological advance as compared to other classic combat systems. Although a large-scale military action is considered unlikely, there are general concerns about minimizing risks on the battlefield, in order to avoid the loss of human lives, so a handy option was to capitalize on the technological advance we are witnessing, leaving dangerous and routine tasks to robots. Anticipating a future widespread use of unmanned systems, this article is a plea for the use of remotely piloted vehicles for missions in the underwater environment, an environment hostile to human life but permissive to specialized vectors. The novelty of this article is that it presents some tactical advantages that a naval force can benefit from in the future by using robots and autonomous systems that influence underwater and surface operations. Keywords: remotely piloted vehicles; underwater drones; technological revolution. We believe that technological advance has a The novelty of this article is that it analyses major impact on the use of techniques and tactics some tactical advantages that a naval force can in combat hence the naval forces of the future will benefit from when using robots, autonomous widely use remote-controlled combat systems in systems or remotely piloted underwater vehicles. this increasingly complex military environment in We have noticed that at the international which time contracts and speed reaction increases. level there is a tendency to adapt technologies The purpose of this approach is to promote initially developed for civilian purposes within the potential use of these innovative technologies military programs to equip fleets with modern by the Romanian Naval Forces, especially for the machinery. Remotely piloted underwater vehicles use of remotely piloted vehicles for missions in the as a capability will play an important role in the underwater environment. tactical field, so they must be part of the permanent To this end, this article has set the following concerns of the naval forces. Due to the effect they objectives: identification of the remote-controlled or produce and the low risk factors on the personnel, autonomous vehicles importance in tactical actions they have known an evolutionary stage with a great and the relationship with the doctrinal aspects of the technological advance in relation to other classic use of such revolutionary capabilities; presentation of combat systems in the underwater environment. some missions of the naval forces in the underwater The evolution of underwater combat systems environment and the opportunity to use remotely has recent origins and this has to do with the ability piloted or autonomous underwater vehicles in such of fleets to support naval systems development missions; identification of risks and threats related programs in order to gain and maintain maritime to the use of remotely piloted or autonomous superiority. The major maritime powers underwater vehicles in naval forces actions. understood this and promoted research in the field, so that in all three environments of the maritime *”Carol I” National Defence University e-mail: [email protected] space, air, surface and underwater, they benefited **Diving Center, General Staff from innovations that encouraged competition. of the Romanian Navy The military naval field was the engine of e-mail: [email protected] technological development but also benefited from 62 September, 2020 Bulletin of ”Carol I” National Defence University the technological advantages in the field of civil the approached field. According to the Explanatory applicability. Dictionary of the Romanian language, a robot is From the evolutionary point of view regarding ”an automatic device that can perform, based on a underwater combat systems, we observe an active complex system of programs, a series of directed involvement of the great maritime powers early in actions, similar to human actions”. The key is the history when the great visionaries sensed the that the robot can replace a person in performing importance of mastering the maritime environment predetermined tasks by pre-programming. An for the manifestation of regional or global interests. autonomous system or robot refers to the fact that The British and Spaniards ruled the world at the it is composed of a robotic element but also has a beginning of the Modern Age by dominating the functional autonomy based on the on-board sensors world’s seas and oceans aboard cannon-armed that allow it to react and / or change its action in galleons. Later in World War II, Nazi Germany certain situations. and Imperial Japan met their operational objectives Regardless of the human-machine command by dominating the underwater environment, using and control relationship, words such as ”automatic”, submarines to fight surface ships. At the end of the ”automated” and ”autonomous” are often used second millennium, analyzing the composition of to refer to the machine’s complexity. The term the navies of the most important military forces, we ”automatic” is used to refer to systems that have could conclude that a combination of surface ships very simple mechanical responses to environmental and submarines is necessary to be measured as a change. Examples of automatic devices include maritime power. In the 21st century, the revolution toasters and mechanical thermostats. In the navy, of militarized robots and the development of auto- mines can be described as automatic devices. The nomous systems could rewrite the recipe for success. term ”automated” is often used to refer to more Thus, today, we can consider that the trend complex systems, which based on certain rules of technological development has determined may react differently on a case-by-case basis. The in the maritime field the appearance of a turning personal cars used every day are equipped with point that will change the approach of modern automated braking systems, traction control, etc. warfare and that of the future. The war will remain The term ”autonomous” is reserved for systems that a confrontation of interests, but technology will perform tasks or have a mode of operation capable certainly change its character. Clausewitz himself of overcoming certain situations and which is not stated that war could have different manifestations directly predictable. In addition to all this, there is depending on the actors involved, the purpose and the means at hand1.Remotely piloted weapon also the term “artificial intelligence” which refers to systems are the new means available. They are systems that have almost human intelligence but in already widely used, and this suggests that they a strict field of activity, performing tasks depending could be the fighting machines of the future, a war on certain variables. waged by robots armed with artificial intelligence. These tasks can be performed, and there are Undoubtedly, this foreseeable progress will examples, in space, in the air, on the ground, on the also lead to changes in mentality by imposing water and underwater. Hence the military literature changes in doctrines and tactics that will highlight has developed various acronyms that include the the usefulness of new combat systems and specify operating environment for which the system is their role in combat or combat support. In this intended: UAS (Unmanned Aerial System), UGS article, we will not analyze the factors that require (Unmanned Ground System) and those for the a change of mentality but rather we will review the maritime domain USS (Unmanned Surface System) tactical advantages that we can benefit from in the for surface and UUS (Unmanned Underwater future using robots and autonomous systems and the System) for the underwater environment. UXS or impact in underwater and surface combat, in order simply US (Unmanned Systems) is another acronym to meet those three objectives of our approach. that encompasses all of these unmanned systems. The term ”unmanned” although widely used Specific terminology can be considered inaccurate and should rather For the beginning, we will make a short be replaced by “remote piloted”. Although these presentation of some specific terms pertaining to systems do not have an operator on board, they September, 2020 63 Bulletin of ”Carol I” National Defence University are, to a large extent, not autonomous and benefit piloted systems that will impact the naval combat from human intervention for effective piloting and tactics similar with air drones that changed the land more. The best example is the UAS MQ-9 Reaper tactics. recently used by the U.S. for specific actions in Most likely, we will never get rid of manned the enemy’s territory.2 One such system needs 171 combat platforms, but this does not mean that people during a mission patrol3. we will not be able to improve to a large extent In the literature, even the term “drone” has the current capabilities by using remotely piloted begun to be accepted for all means of action of these vehicles. systems, in fact defining a system piloted remotely Therefore, we are going to further describe or by means of an autonomous computer or equipped the role and location of remotely piloted vehicles with artificial intelligence located on board. in military actions. We choose three missions, considered by us the most relevant, in which the The importance of remotely piloted vehicles action of underwater drones will produce effects The technological revolution we are with impact on the field: MCM, ISR and enemy witnessing today also has an impact on the way deception.