Main image: A screenshot of a 2023 attack by a Ukrainian UMV on a Russian Navy warship. Credit: SSU
The United Kingdom is developing two unmanned marine vessels for the Ukrainian army, which has shown success in combating Russian naval forces in the Black Sea. These are the Snapper and Wasp drones, according to Naval Technology.
In two written responses to the UK Parliament released on February 4, 2025, British Minister for Defence Procurement, Maria Eagle, mentioned the Wasp and Snapper programs for marine drones. The UK Defense Minister, John Healey, likely referred to them during the annual ADS dinner on January 28.
According to Eagle, Wasp and Snapper are "new unmanned maritime systems" that were "rapidly developed specifically to support Ukraine.
“The system is currently undergoing final testing, and further details will be set out in due course,” Eagle stated.
Naval Technology also discusses how drones are changing naval warfare, citing an analysis by GlobalData.
- In March 2024, Ukraine forced the Russian Black Sea fleet to retreat from the frontlines of combat after more than a third of the fleet was seriously damaged or completely destroyed. These damages were largely inflicted by drones.
- In August 2024, the UK Ministry of Defence stated that Ukrainian naval defense technologies had "proven invaluable" in the Black Sea region, where, from February 2022 to June 2024, 26 Russian ships were either damaged or destroyed.
- GlobalData claims that perhaps the most important among all the unmanned marine drones used on the battlefield is the Magura V5 USV — a small unmanned surface vehicle (sUSV) that is 5.5 meters long and weighs less than 1000 kg. The drone has an operational range of up to 800 km, a maximum speed of 78 km/h, and can carry 200 kg of explosive payloads
