The Navy’s second Unmanned Systems Integrated Battle Problem (UxS IBP) is focused on integrated unmanned systems together rather than working with crewed platforms, a Navy official said this week.
U.S. Pacific Fleet began the latest UxS IBP 23.1 event on May 1, which it uses to test and develop various unmanned concepts and capabilities in the 3rd Fleet. The event is due to conclude on May 12 following final test events that day (
Defense Daily, May 5).
Previously, the first previous similar test event, Unmanned Integrated Battle Problem 21 (UxS IBP21), occurred in 2021 (Defense Daily, April 19, 2021).
One of the officers leading the latest exercise said this year’s event differs from the last one in that it predominantly consists of unmanned systems, rather than integrated them with manned platforms.
“This IBP 23 exercised unmanned command and control; advanced further tactics, techniques and procedures; and gave operators more of a hands-on experience with sort of a longer list and more diverse list of unmanned systems at sea and in a combat environment. And it was, predominantly, if not exclusively, all unmanned systems for this event,” Cmdr. Jerry Daley, serving as Officer in Tactical Control of IBP 23.1 and commanding officer of Unmanned Surface Vessel Division One (USDIV-1), told reporters during a telephone roundtable on May 11.
Daley confirmed that “is a little bit different in contrast from IBP 21, where it was more manned and unmanned. This was unmanned and unmanned.”
The Navy previously said IBP 23.1 includes the Navy’s Leidos [LDOS]-built Sea Hunter and Seahawk medium displacement unmanned surface vessels Sea Hunter and Seahawk, AeroVironment RQ-20 PUMA unmanned aircraft system, and the MARTAC T-38 Devil Ray unmanned surface vehicle.
3rd Fleet spokesperson Ens. Lacy Burkett told Defense Daily the unmanned systems in this event were roughly divided into 30 percent air vehicle, 10 percent undersea vehicles, and 60 percent surface vehicles.
Daley said one example of the exercise integrating various platforms was launching an unmanned aerial asset off an unmanned ship. Specifically, it included a Shield AI V-BAT vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aircraft launched from the Navy’s Seahawk unmanned surface vessel.
“That’s a more complex scenario to where – developing what that [Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures] looks like, operating parameters, and how you would execute that in a contested environment or combat environment…that is the next step in the progression of integrating unmanned systems into fleet operations across the continuum, both under sea, on the surface and in the air.”
The Navy was unable to provide statistics on which specific vehicles or how many were included in the event, but Daley confirmed it includes unmanned surface vessels, subsurface vessels and aerial systems “in addition to other corporations bringing different types of autonomy and functionality and decision aids and operational tools that connect all these systems.”
However, Daley confirmed a General Atomics MQ-9B UAV was used, even though it is exclusively launched from land.
“MQ-9 Bravo brings additional subsurface to surface warfighting capability to the fleet, through its very specific sort of modifications General Atomics has made to the airframe for the maritime environment… the range for the MQ-9 and the onstage time is significantly higher than your traditional maritime patrol aircraft. And that brings additional capability in and of itself to operate in the maritime.”
Daley underscored the operational tools that help integrate these systems differentiate this event from other recent unmanned exercises.
“The difference in the IVP 21 to 23 is these things are being integrated as well. I think that’s a key point to note.”
Daley said technology has advanced quickly in the last several years and “the ability to have advanced communications and decision aids only increases the ability to close kill chains faster. With persistent communication, even in a contested environment or simulated contested environment, it makes the technology advancements from industry, and working with DoD, only advances that makes us more effective as a team.”
Daley said the Navy will continue to gather lessons learned from these kinds of events, will keep iterating new exercises that add industry partners, and overall said “we will go out further for longer, and we’ll continue to increase the complexity as we move forward with these events.”