Nature devised the flying fish. Science fiction envisioned the Flying Sub from television’s “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.” Now, Boeing has patented a drone that can transform from an aircraft into a submarine.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office this year approved Boeing’s application for the “Rapid deployment air and water vehicle.” The patent application describes an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that begins its journey as a remote-controlled airplane that then plunges into the water, shedding some parts to become a practical submersible.
While underwater, the UAV can perform undersea reconnaissance, or even deliver a payload of some type. When its underwater journey is complete, the UAV can surface and wirelessly communicate the results of its mission. The UAV also potentially can be recovered, with the vehicle designed with the possibility of component re-use, as mentioned in Boeing’s patent application.
While a far cry from the supersonic, nuclear-powered Flying Sub of the 1960s TV show, the Boeing UAV fulfills a long-imagined vision of a navigable vehicle that can command both the sea and the sky. With nearly three-quarters of the earth’s surface covered by water, there are few limits on where this drone can go.
It’s easy to image the military applications of such a UAV, with a capability to fly long distances, to loiter for a period of time, to detect a submerged object—such as a submarine—and then to closely monitor that object while underwater. Additionally, the UAV could carry sensors that would enable it to detect and gather information about a submarine.
However, it is also not hard to imagine this device being adapted as a weapon. Drones that were originally intended for use as surveillance systems have been adapted to deliver munitions. The world’s first known drone strike was conducted by a reconnaissance UAV, the General Atomic MQ-1 Predator, which in 2012 used a Hellfire missile to destroy a car carrying Al-Qaeda operatives.
The Boeing patent application states, “The payload… may comprise a sensor, an instrument for environmental monitoring, or another type of payload depending on the purpose of the flight.” While never mentioning a use for the drone, the language of the document seems to leave open the possibility of weaponizing the vehicle.
Theoretically speaking, military planners might find a use for a UAV that can fly to the vicinity of a target and then turn into a torpedo capable of sinking a ship or a submarine. On the other hand, the vehicle also could have non-military uses, such as detecting and gathering information on sea life. A UAV of this type could be configured with a variety of sensors such as humidity and temperature sensors, air quality sensors, light sensors and much more to be used as hybrid intelligence and environmental surveillance units.
The Boeing application describes the UAV as possessing systems for control, communications and navigation, perhaps GPS. The vehicle would detach its wings, stabilizer and air propeller before or when entering the water, either using explosive bolts or water-soluble glue. Once these items are jettisoned, the vehicle would be streamlined for underwater navigation, using a secondary propeller.
The patent mentions the use of a buoyancy tank to allow the vehicle to operate at differing depths. While the concept is compelling, a patent is not the same thing as a product.
Only time will tell if this fish will ever fly.