Can the US Navy Stop 230-MPH “Supercavitating Torpedoes” From Russia & Iran?

By Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

Both Iran and Russia reportedly have operational supercavitating torpedoes, weapons which can reach speeds of 230 miles per hour to attack submarines and surface ships at truly unprecedented and paradigm changing speeds. 

How dangerous are they? Some raise questions about whether they have the guidance sufficient to ultimately be extremely successful against moving targets, and certainly one must wonder how many operational supercavitating torpedoes these countries have. Regardless, the threat seems real and substantial, as Iran could threaten US surface ships in the Strait of Hormuz and other areas throughout the Middle East and of course Russia might be positioned to threaten US platforms in the Black Sea and many other places around the world. 

Also, Russia and Iran may cite supercavitating torpedoes in their press reports, however both countries are known to “hype” their weapons so the actual extent of the threat may not be known.  Regardless, the danger is likely taken very seriously by the Pentagon, given that the US naturally wishes to preserve the possibility that is has undersea superiority, and clearly does not want to place its submarines and surface ships at a massive risk. Perhaps of greatest significance, can these torpedoes be detected by sonar and, if so, is there a way to intercept them? Perhaps they simply move to fast for submarines or surface ships to move out of the way, yet maybe there are variable depth sonar systems, undersea unmanned nodes able to detect at standoff ranges, electronic warfare or other kinds of countermeasures?

These seem to be the operative questions, as there are some unknowns and many variables yet to consider. 

Supercavitating Torpedoes: What We Know

Russia’s VA-111 Shkval is a supercavitating torpedo reported by Russian press to achieve speed of 230 miles per hour, a speed more than four times speeds listed for most legacy torpedoes which travel anywhere from 28 to 48 Mph. The speed differential, therefore, is massive and therefore something likely to increase the risks posed to major US Navy surface ships and submarines seeking to elude detection.

An essay from militaryperiscope.com, for instance, specifies this enormous margin of difference.

“The Shkval is fired from the standard 533-mm torpedo tube at a depth of up to 328 ft (100 m). The rocket-powered torpedo exits the tube at 50 knots (93 kmh) and then ignites the rocket motor, propelling the weapon to speeds four to five times faster than other conventional torpedoes,” the essay states.