Israel is investing in the development of underwater armaments to counter Iran, the ZM (Zona Militar) website reports. According to the report, some of the systems are operational, some undergoing testing, and one of the outstanding items is Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) unmanned submarine BlueWhale. The vessel was developed by IAI’s Elta division.
A week and a half before the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, IAI and German marine electronics and systems company Atlas Electronik presented BlueWhale at the REPMUS (Robotic Experimentation and Prototyping using Maritime Uncrewed Systems) annual military exercise organized and hosted by the Portuguese Navy and NATO. The craft was displayed before 200 people from academic institutions, defense companies, and military forces from thirty countries. The Israeli-German collaboration facilitates intelligence gathering using a telescopic mast that sticks out of the water while the craft is submerged, on which are installed radar and electro-optic systems for detecting targets on sea and land.
Via satellite communications antennas on the mast, the information is transmitted in real time to command positions that can be anywhere in the world, on sea or shore. Submarine detection and acoustic intelligence gathering are performed by sonar systems along the sides of the vessel. According to research institute VMR, the unmanned military submarines market is expected to grow from $3.4 billion in 2021 to $8 billion in 2030.
According to the article, BlueWhale is designed to be an important weapon against Iran, which is expanding its maritime capabilities. Iran operates two naval forces: the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, the naval arm of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, and the Navy of the Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution, part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Each has different areas of responsibility. The Iran Navy is responsible for the Caspian Sea and the Gulf of Oman, that is, the open sea, while the Revolutionary Guards navy is responsible for controlling the Persian Gulf and the Straits of Hormuz, through which 30% of the world’s trade in oil passes.
Despite the theoretical distinction between the two naval forces, both aim to further the interests of the regime. This is why the Iranian government finances the wages of 18,000 servicemen in the Iran Navy and another 20,000 in the Revolutionary Guards navy. In an attempt to expand the ranks, in late 2023 the Revolutionary Guards set up the naval Basij, an auxiliary force that the Iranian government says will number 55,000 volunteers.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on July 11, 2024.
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