Pentagon developing sub to launch air, underwater drones

Ray Locker | USA TODAY

The Pentagon's high-tech research arm is trying to develop a submarine that would host unmanned underwater and airborne drones to help U.S. forces penetrate an adversary's sophisticated defenses or cope with collapsed states and international piracy, Pentagon planning documents show.

Called Hydra by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the submarine would be an underwater "truck" that would host modules for unmanned submarines and aerial drones. When Hydra reaches a specific location to release the drones, the modules would open and the aerial drones would rise to the surface and fly to their missions. The underwater drones would also seek their targets.

"The rising number of ungoverned states, piracy, and proliferation of sophisticated defenses severely stretches current resources and impacts the nation's ability to conduct special operations and contingency missions," DARPA's planning document says. "The Hydra program represents a cost effective way to add undersea capacity that can be tailored to support each mission."

It's another example of the Obama administration's focus on the Pacific and ocean environments. In the last year, the Pentagon has expanded its undersea mapping of the area, developed ways to deposit military payloads underwater to have them in place for future action and expanded research into biological threats endemic in Asian environments. It has also moved a growing contingent of Marines into northern Australia.

Much of this stems from a perceived need to counter China's growing influence in the region and to strengthen U.S. military ties with nations in the region.

A version of Hydra could be ready by late 2018, DARPA records show. Its development reflects the military's focus on ways to save money and use fewer troops to perform its missions. Last month, DARPA asked researchers to help develop ways to use more drone aircraft that could be piloted automatically.