Negotiations between Germany and Israel over a potential purchase of Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) unmanned BlueWhale submarine have entered an advanced stage, defence-network.com reported.
Since IAI first unveiled the BlueWhale, the German Navy has expressed strong interest in acquiring the system. Concerns over growing underwater threats have prompted Germany to test the advanced autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV).
Last year, the Bundeswehr confirmed it conducted an intensive two-week trial of the BlueWhale as part of its Operational Experimentation (OPEX) initiative. The trials were carried out in cooperation with IAI and German defense company Atlas Elektronik in one of the German Navy’s most challenging environments—the Baltic Sea.
According to IAI, the BlueWhale was tested under specifications from the German Navy and the Bundeswehr Technical Center for Ships and Naval Weapons (WTD 71). The NATO Center of Excellence for Operations supported the experimental integration of the BlueWhale into the Navy’s operational picture.
“OPEX is the toolkit of the German Navy to drive innovation and rapidly test new approaches and technologies under realistic conditions,” the Bundeswehr said in an earlier release. The program aligns with Germany’s “Navy 2035 and Beyond” strategy, which seeks to counter current and future security threats with advanced technologies.
BlueWhale is a large autonomous underwater platform measuring 10.9 meters in length, 1.12 meters in diameter, and weighing 5.5 tons. The unmanned system is designed for covert reconnaissance missions at sea, submarine and underwater target detection, acoustic data collection, and mine-hunting on the seabed.
“The autonomous submarine can perform most of the missions of a manned submarine for several weeks at a time, at minimal cost and maintenance, and without putting a crew at risk,” said Boaz Levy, president of IAI.
In addition to intelligence gathering, BlueWhale is capable of detecting other submarines and covertly mapping mines on the seafloor using advanced sonar systems. “The ability of BlueWhale to operate autonomously for weeks, collect and transmit real-time data, and detect targets at sea and on land aligns with the goals of Germany’s defense modernization and its ‘Navy 2035+’ strategy,” Levy added.
IAI described the BlueWhale as a key element of its maritime solutions portfolio, which includes exclusive economic zone protection, defensive and offensive system suites for surface ships, and autonomous vessel operations management.