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Liu Zhen

An underwater drone photographed at China’s National Day parade rehearsal suggests the People’s Liberation Army Navy has built up its anti-submarine warfare capability, observers said.
The unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) was seen draped in naval camouflage on a six-wheeled transporter during a rehearsal for the parade.
Like many UUVs, this drone has a torpedo-shaped body and tail fins, but at about a metre (3.2 feet) in diameter and more than five metres long, it is unusually big.
Chinese authorities have not commented on the device, but military experts said it could be a submersible for general marine data collection and gathering underwater military information.
“Its job will be similar to US submersibles,” one military analyst said.

The US Navy this year ordered Boeing to build diesel-electric Orca extra large UUVs, which at 15.5 metres are three times the length of the PLAN drone.
The extra large UUV will be able to operate across thousands of nautical miles without connecting to a mother ship. It has sections to provide guidance, navigation, autonomy, situational awareness, core communications, power distribution, energy, propulsion and manoeuvring, and sensors.
China unveils supersonic spy drone during National Day military parade rehearsal
With a payload bay dedicated to carrying weapons such as torpedoes, the Orca is designed to carry out tasks such as mine countermeasures, anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface vessel warfare and electronic warfare.
The Chinese drone was likely to have fewer offensive capabilities, the analyst said.
But the development of this large UUV means China has been paying a lot of attention to the growth of its anti-submarine warfare capability, according to Collin Koh, research fellow with the Maritime Security Programme at Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
“[It] could pose a challenge to prospective adversaries such as the US Navy and allied underwater activities in waters near the Chinese coast, such as the East China Sea and South China Sea,” Koh said.




Such a large drone could be used in long-duration anti-submarine surveillance or more offensive forms of intelligence-gathering operations in distant waters, he said
China has expanded its unmanned undersea vehicle capabilities, including in oceanographic research, seabed topography and marine sciences. It has also built the Jiaolong manned submersible, which can dive to more than 7,000 metres.
Did China just accidentally show off its new supersonic cruise missile?
To mark the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic on Tuesday, a military parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square will include new advanced weapons such as DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles and DF-17 hypersonic glider missiles.
New drones to make their debut also include the supersonic DR-8 reconnaissance and Sharp Sword stealth attack aerial vehicles.


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Witnesses reported what appeared to be an unmanned underwater vehicle on a military truck during rehearsals for Tuesday’s National Day parade in Beijing. Photo: Handout

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China

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UUV spotted in preparations for the National Day parade may play role similar to America’s Orca



UUV spotted in preparations for 70th anniversary celebrations may play role similar to America’s Orca.


Glimpse of underwater drone ‘signals China is ramping up anti-submarine powers’

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} UUV spotted in preparations for the National Day parade may play role similar to America’s Orca

UUV spotted in preparations for the National Day parade may play role similar to America’s Orca