Underwater drone development competition...The front line of next-generation drones is the ocean.

Competition to develop drones that will travel through the deep sea is expected to heat up due to the rapid change in the global security landscape.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 16th local time that the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and South Korea are pushing to develop a new unmanned submersible to enhance their defense capabilities.

Boeing plans to deliver five killer whale-class underwater drones to the U.S. Navy by the end of next year.

The submersible is about 26 meters long and can sail more than 12,000 kilometers without human intervention."There is tremendous potential in unmanned systems to redouble our combat capabilities," U.S. Navy Chief of Staff Lisa Franchetti
said earlier this year, explaining the meaning.

The U.S. military is testing the unmanned submersible "Rat Stingray" of Northrop Gramman, a defense company that manufactured B-2 stealth bombers.

Australia is also developing an unmanned submersible "ghost shark" with start-up Anduril to increase the capabilities of underwater warfare.

In the UK, BAE Systems is testing the unmanned submersible "Hern," which has a similar shape to the rat stingray in the United States.

The WSJ said France, South Korea, Germany and Ukraine are also focusing on developing new unmanned submersibles.

Unmanned submersibles have been used by academics and energy companies to survey the deep sea for decades, but the recent escalation of geopolitical unrest around the world has led to a significant increase in defense demand.

The U.S. is bound to be busy because of the global leadership battle with China.

China has the world's largest naval fleet and large underwater drones, continuing its efforts to reinstate its maritime power.

In Europe, relations with Russia have turned hostile because of the war in Ukraine, and we are looking at the possibility of a deep-sea sabotage.

In particular, Europe is more concerned about the possibility of information and energy transport routes being attacked by Russia and others in the wake of the cut of submarine optical cables in the region.

As revealed in the Ukraine war, drones have greatly changed the aspect of the war as a low-cost and effective reconnaissance and destruction weapon.

WSJ said it is confident that drones that revolutionized modern warfare in the sky by defense companies and navies in each country will achieve the same efficiency in the sea.

Drones such as ghost sharks and rat rays can dive deep for several kilometers and continue to operate for days with little human intervention.

Defense experts believe that these capabilities are ideal for information gathering, deep-sea facility protection, and response to potential threats in the Pacific Ocean.

"It's the right time," said Cynthia Cook, a senior researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a U.S. think tank. "The submarine will be fantastic, but it's too expensive."

In general, the deep sea is harder to maintain communication than the sky, and the operational conditions in the water are more demanding than checks.

For this reason, it is observed that the success or failure of the underwater drone competition depends on the level to which the technology suitable for the purpose is completed.