Above: BlueWhale leaving Sesimbra Bay, south of Lisbon, Portugal, on the way to UW exercise.
Credit IAI ELTA

Developed by ELTA Systems Ltd, a Division of IAI , The BlueWhale is a stealthy, long endurance, large displacement unmanned underwater vehicle (LDUUV). BlueWhale supports conventional submarines and naval task forces by performing the following important covert missions such as Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), SEABED warfare, Mine Counter Measures (MCM), Acoustic Intelligence (ACINT), Forward SIGINT scout for Special forces including real time video support for landing missions, Forward SIGINT scout for naval task force and Piracy, terrorism and illegal immigration detection.

With the aim of maximising Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) capabilities, IAI-ELTA teamed with ATLAS ELEKTRONIK, a world leading company in the underwater domain, to integrate the company’s Towed Array Sonar (TAS) with BlueWhale. The synergy between these systems has produced a truly ‘game changing’ solution.

Using B-Static and Multi Static external active sonar sources, the system delivers the revolutionary ability to extend a submarine barrier over areas that were previously impossible to monitor in an efficient way. Operating undetected with a passive array to a dive depth of 300 metres, BlueWhale creates a true dilemma for enemy submarine enemy forces. This capability was demonstrated with amazing success on a daily basis during three weeks of REPMUS23 and DYMS23 as part of a NATO task force.

In addition to the TAS, sub-surface sensor suite includes active and passive Flank Array Sonar (FAS) for the detection of surface vessels and submarines, Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS) for mine detection and high-resolution sea bottom mapping and magnetic sensors for mine detection and verification.

Above: BlueWhale is ready for the next mission.
Credit IAI ELTA

BlueWhale brings entirely new capabilities to MCM. For example, the covert autonomous survey of a coastal area before amphibious landings, close inshore to the enemy coast. No other solution available today can accomplish this task stealthily.

Underwater systems team lead, Captain (Ret.) EE, an experienced naval officer with over 25 years at sea in command positions, explained that BlueWhale's mission capabilities, proven over 2,000 diving hours encompassing a range of successful autonomous missions, add a new dimension to subsurface warfare and make it the first LDUUV to complement larger crewed platforms.

On top, BlueWhale features a patented, purpose designed collapsible mast configured with an advanced suite of high-performance surface payloads, including staring radar, electro-optics/IR, R-ESM, and low signature Broad Band SATCOM for real-time data exchange.

Demonstrating this capability, BlueWhale was the only ‘eye on the target’ before and during special forces amphibious landing exercise at REPMUS23 in a very shallow and complexed area of operation.

BlueWhale is operated and managed via a highly developed Command & Control (C2) system, which facilitates a continuous Situation Awareness Picture, Call-to-Action commands, events blogger, remote operation and more. A user-friendly Human-Machine Interface (HMI) enables the system to be efficiently operated by only two personnel, a LDUUV operator and a payload (sonar) specialist.

The ability of the BlueWhale to support conventional submarine forces by performing critical missions with complete autonomy reduces crew workload, saves lives and improves mission performance. This, together with the fact that BlueWhale is less costly to acquire and operate than conventional submarines, make the system a true force multiplier.

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