China Copies DARPA’s Manta Ray New UnderSea Drone

By Jim Morris, Warrior Vice President, News

The US and China are locked in yet another competition for military technological supremacy, this one involving underwater drones that both have a resemblance to the manta ray – the creature also known as the devil fish.

In the case of the US, the program is actually called Manta Ray. It’s run by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and at this stage involves prototypes built by Northrop Grumman and PacMar Technologies. The Northrop model underwent tests off the coast of Southern California earlier this year.

Meanwhile, according to a report on China Central Television (CCTV), China has six variants of what is described as soft-bodied submersibles that imitate the manta ray, and they have started what is called “practical deployment” in the South China Sea.

According to reports, larger versions for armed reconnaissance are being developed.

According to CCTV, the submersibles were developed by a team at Northwestern Polytechnical University of China after studying manta rays. The current version is equipped with cameras, sonar and the BeiDou Satellite Navigation System.

In the last year, the drones have completed 60-day “glides” underwater. Researchers are preparing to carry out deep-sea testing of an 800 kilogram version.

“In the future, ton-class prototypes will be developed, enabling the carrying of heavier payloads and sailing to farther distances,” said Cao Yong, one of the university professors on the team. “This will allow reconnaissance with higher efficiency, and eventually reach armed reconnaissance capabilities.”