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Why navies are rethinking fleet use after Ukraine
Sea drones have fundamentally altered the nature of combat in the Black Sea coastal zone. This has forced the Russians to rethink their approach to using the fleet, even hiding it as far away as possible from the drones' range.
This was reported by Dov Raz, a military expert and former Israeli Navy officer, who analyzed Ukraine's experience and its significance for other countries in a column for Novyny.LIVE.
How Ukraine's experience with maritime drones has changed the approach to naval warfare
According to the author, unmanned maritime platforms primarily performed reconnaissance functions a few years ago. However, the full-scale war changed their role. In the Black Sea, these drones have become a formidable offensive force, capable of acting swiftly without risking crew members' lives or expensive vessels. The author notes that the decisive factor in coastal warfare is the speed of decision-making, from identifying the target to delivering the strike.
He identifies the turning point as the fall of 2022. After the attack on Sevastopol, Russia publicly declared for the first time that it was using surface drones alongside aerial drones.
Since then, unmanned surface vehicles have been perceived as weapons rather than supplementary tools. The widespread use of these systems puts constant pressure on defense systems and requires the allocation of significant resources to protect ports and bases.
According to Dov Raz, unmanned underwater vehicles also play a significant role in this war by increasing uncertainty in port and harbor areas and intensifying the threat in the rear. Consequently, the deterrent effect previously provided by large naval groups is increasingly being achieved by using maritime drones.
The author notes that satellite reconnaissance, coastal sensors, aerial surveillance, and open sources of information render the coastal zone nearly "transparent."
Under these circumstances, dispersing forces, reducing visibility, and shortening observation time are essential. This is why restricting access to the area is gradually replacing the desire for complete control of the sea.
According to the article, maritime drones are changing the economics of war. These relatively inexpensive unmanned vehicles force the enemy to use much more expensive countermeasures and maintain forces in a state of constant readiness. Meanwhile, ports are no longer safe zones because strikes that previously required complex operations can now be carried out remotely. Dov Raz asserts that the future lies in hybrid fleets, in which piloted and unmanned systems operate as a single entity.
In summary, Raz notes that modern naval warfare increasingly hinges on the speed of training and the ability to swiftly integrate new technologies. The number of ships is no longer the defining factor in future conflicts.
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