Ukraine’s defence industry is working on the development of torpedo drones – there are several versions in the works, and one of the prototypes has already been presented by the manufacturer’s representatives at the Brave1 exhibition.
It is reported that the range of the presented underwater drone should be 2,000 km, and the drone’s standby time should be up to 3 months. The length of the torpedo will be from 4 to 12 metres, and it will be able to carry up to 5000 kg of explosives, which, you see, sounds very powerful.
However, the manufacturer will add more than just explosives to the torpedo: the device is supposed to be multifunctional, and it will be equipped with several useful devices. First, it will be able to automatically scan the area. For this purpose, it has been equipped with a 3D sonar, hydrophone and a special camera. This scanning can be used to create mine maps for demining.
Secondly, the guidance system has GPS, or it can work using an inertial navigation system in conditions where there is no access to GPS (for example, underwater) or when the signal is jammed. If there is jamming, the device will be able to identify the area where it occurs.
In addition, the guidance system reportedly includes passive sonar to identify and track underwater and surface objects using a system of hydrophones. Ultrasonic sonars have also been added for active sonar at close range.
The torpedo can track and identify objects by size. It will identify targets using a number of video and thermal imaging cameras and visually using a neural network.
In total, the future “line” will include three versions – in addition to the largest TLK 1000, which was described above, there are also plans for TLK 400 and TLK 150. The medium-sized version will be able to carry 500 kg of explosives and will have a range of 1,200 km. The smallest torpedo drone will be equipped with an electric motor, have a range of 100 km and the ability to carry up to 20-50 kg of explosives.
Recently, volunteers showed a new version of a Ukrainian military maritime drone on Twitter. They were named Bakhmut and For the Raccoon.
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