Ukrainian naval drone reportedly sinks Russian explosive drone boat in USV-on-USV clash
TechnologyUnverifiedUpdated:
A Ukrainian uncrewed surface vessel reportedly used a remotely controlled machine-gun turret to disable and sink a Russian explosive drone boat in the Black Sea, shifting from drone boats targeting conventional vessels to a direct encounter between the systems themselves.
A reported interception of a drone boat in the Black Sea
The account says Ukrainian Defense Intelligence detected a Russian Orcan uncrewed surface vessel in the Black Sea and directed a Ukrainian Sargan-3000 drone boat to intercept it. It says the Sargan-3000 fired from about one kilometer away, disabled the Russian vessel's communications antenna, and sank it. An uncrewed surface vessel is a boat operated without people aboard.
Uncrewed surface vessels had already been widely deployed in combat, but direct combat between two such vessels had not been recorded, according to the account.
The account describes a Ukrainian naval drone boat intercepting, firing on, and sinking a Russian explosive drone boat—what it characterizes as the first drone-boat-versus-drone-boat clash.
One uncrewed vessel directly engaging another
If accurate, the encounter would mark a new operational use for naval drones: uncrewed boats engaging other uncrewed boats directly, rather than primarily striking ships, ports, or shore targets.
Sources
- Ars TechnicaMilitary milestone: Ukrainian naval drone sinks Russian kamikaze drone boatRead source →