A new type of unmanned attack boat, the Modular Attack Surface Craft (MASC), is being built for the US Navy, which will be able to perform logistical and other operations. The project is being carried out by the BlackSea company, writes Interesting Engineering.
It is noted that the new unmanned vessel will be able to transport more than 30 tons of cargo over a distance of up to 3,000 nautical miles (about 5,556 km) at a speed of 10 knots (18.5 km/h). An extended autonomous range of up to 10,000 nautical miles (about 18,520 km) is also announced.
BlackSea’s MASC USV has been designed from the ground up , unlike retrofitted commercial hulls, to provide twice the payload area and electrical power of similarly sized vessels. It is powered by two integrated Volvo Penta D8-IPS600 propulsion systems.
According to the publication, the unmanned boat can be used for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, electronic warfare tasks, logistics, infrastructure monitoring, strike and mine countermeasures tasks.
"Our approach starts with the mission, not the platform. We designed a flexible, modular combatant that can evolve with the Fleet and be built at scale today, not years from now," said Todd Greene, BlackSea’s deputy director of advanced technologies.
It is noted that BlackSea is ready to build and deliver the first fully integrated MASC prototype within six months.
The US military has previously faced challenges in deploying unmanned systems based on artificial intelligence, including problems with unmanned boats, errors in object recognition software, and other difficulties.