PLA may use Haiyan UUV against Vietnamese frogmen
The Haiyan underwater unmanned vehicle. (Internet photo)
Amid ongoing tensions between China and Vietnam over the disputed South China Sea, the People's Liberation Army will likely deploy the Haiyan autonomous underwater unmanned vehicle (UUV) to hunt for enemy combat divers (frogmen) and prevent the special forces from sabotaging Chinese oil rigs in the region, reports the state-run China Internet Information Center.
The Haiyan UUV was originally designed by researchers from northern China's Tianjin University as a civilian platform and its primary mission is to conduct scientific exploration of marine biology, seabeds and to aid search and rescue operations, according to the state-run China News Service. The researchers have close ties with the PLA Navy, however, and it is possible that the Haiyan may be deployed to the battlefield in the future.
The UUV can last underwater for 30 days, has a range of 1,000 kilometers and is capable of reaching a depth of 1,094 meters. The Haiyan can thus be used for missions like minehunting and salvage surveys, while it can also detect the movement of enemy frogmen and submarine. If equipped with weapon systems, the Haiyan would be capable of striking against Vietnamese frogmen attempting to close in on Chinese oil rigs in the disputed waters.
Frogmen of the People's Navy of Vietnam have already been deployed to place fishing nets and floating objects around the controversial Haiyang Shiyou 981 platform in the Paracel (Xisha to China) islands to disrupt the Chinese operation, reports China's nationalistic Global Times tabloid.
Meanwhile, the PLA Navy may also opt to purchase or construct a larger version of the Haiyan and deploy in large numbers to prevent any future disruption.
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