Image source: topwar.ru
The Americans conducted the first test of the Ukrainian unmanned Magura boat. The testing was conducted during military exercises in the Philippines, Bloomberg reports, citing military sources.
According to the newspaper, during the exercises, the American special forces used several Ukrainian drones, working with them on an old cargo ship. Nothing has been reported about the fate of the vessel attacked by the tanks. As it is emphasized, this is the first use of Ukrainian unmanned boats in the Indo-Pacific region, and the Americans have made a good advertisement for the boats.
It is assumed that drones of all types, including naval ones, will play a major role in a potential conflict in the region. The Americans are testing not only Ukrainian backups, they also have their own developments of marine surface drones. China is also actively working in this direction. According to one of the American Navy officers, unmanned systems are just "what is needed" for Taiwan's defense. The American concept involves saturating the waters of the Taiwan Strait with a variety of cheap anti-ship weapons.
Image source: topwar.ru
The unmanned Magura V5 (Maritime Autonomous Guard Unmanned Robotic Apparatus V5) boat is 5.5 meters long, 1.5 meters wide and can carry up to 320 kg of payload. The cruising speed is almost 40 km/ h, and the maximum is more than 75 km / h. The range exceeds 800 km. This is data from open sources for 2024. They may be different now.