The conflict in Ukraine is demonstrating how drones are reshaping the way wars are being fought. But as drones have become a ubiquitous feature across the Ukrainian sky, another type of deadly drone is making a splash, colouring the Black Sea an ominous red. Learning lessons from the conflict around Crimea, the Houthis in the Red Sea have used an unmanned suicide boat or an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) to unleash a new kind of terror across the high seas. The rebels in Yemen, allied to the Iranian regime have struck and sunk the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier, MV Tutor near the Bab-el-Mandeb straits. This is the second sinking of a ship by the Houthis since November last year.
Sea drones, both surface and submerged were being looked at by navies for coastal patrol and for dangerous tasks such as mine clearing and for towing targets for gunnery practice by ships. Some of these boats, meant for coastal patrol, were also armed with heavy machine guns, rockets and missiles. The conflict in Ukraine already known for its prolific use of suicide drones expanded the use of these modern-day kamikazes to the sea again. A fitting tribute, as the term Kamikaze comes from Japanese and means divine wind or spirit wind. The term was first used to describe a typhoon that destroyed famed the Mongol warrior and emperor Kublai Khan’s invasion fleet headed to Japan. The name now is mostly associated with Japanese pilots who deliberately crashed their planes on to American ships. Thus reflective of their naval roots.
From the manned Japanese torpedoes of World War 2 to the attack on USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 the threat to ships from small craft has never been this great. Even the most formidable ships that can take out aircraft, other ships and missiles seem nearly unarmed when faced with a manoeuvring fast craft heading to attack it. In terms of economic asymmetry or cost-benefit analysis, nothing seems to beat the drone; the attack on a Russian Sukhoi-57 is a case in point. The drones are especially deadly as they are difficult to detect by traditional methods such as radar due to their small size and because they travel low on the surface of an everchanging sea. These drones do seem to be the next big thing in naval warfare. India is taking great strides in both killer drones and its countermeasures on land. Both India and the world must look towards developing and countering these stealthy and deadly weapons of the sea.
