The project will oversee the development of a Switchblade Loitering Munition that can be launched from both Submerged Submarines and Unmanned Underwater Vehicles.

Ministry of Defense has also issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) to develop a Submarine-Launched Unmanned Aerial System to meet the tactical requirement of submarines by aiding intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and augmenting maritime domain awareness.

ULUAV will be equipped with a miniaturized both electro-optical and infrared sensors in its nose. It is unclear if there also will be an unarmed drone to provide enhanced sensor, communication, and cyber-security capabilities for the submarine. Development of a reconnaissance variant equipped with an electro-optic capability with reliable target solution analysis for discreet surveillance might also be considered.

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Writing for the Forbes magazine, HI Sutton said that these sea gliders, which the Chinese are deploying “en masse”, are a type of Uncrewed Underwater Vehicle (UUV) which were launched in mid-December 2019 and recovered in February after making over 3,400 observations.

Citing the government sources, HI Sutton in his report said that these gliders are similar to those deployed by the US Navy, one of which was seized by Beijing in 2016 to ensure “safe navigation of passing ships.”

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“Taken at face value, it may be surprising that China is now deploying these types of UUV en masse in the Indian Ocean. China has also deployed the Sea Wing from an ice breaker in the Arctic,” HI Sutton wrote.

According to the defence expert, reports from December last year suggested that 14 would be employed in the Indian Ocean mission but only 12 were used. HI Sutton said that these gliders are unpowered with large wings to glide that can run for long periods of time, adding that they are not fast or agile, however, they are employed for long-range missions.

Furthermore, the defence analyst said these Chinese gliders that are placed in the Indian Ocean were reportedly gathering oceanography data, which “sounds innocuous” however, is commonly gathered for naval intelligence purposes.”

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