The Republic of Korea (ROK) Navy released the concept design of its future mine warfare USV at Drone Show Korea 2025 (DSK 2025).
The ROK Navy is actively pursuing the development of unmanned and autonomous naval systems under its “Navy Sea Ghost” initiative. This program aims to enhance operational efficiency, reduce risks to personnel, and address manpower shortages by integrating unmanned surface and underwater vehicles into naval operations. It reflects the ROK Navy’s strategic shift toward advanced naval warfare, aligning with global trends in unmanned maritime systems.
At DSK 2025, the ROK Navy revealed a conceptual model of its new mine warfare USV. This USV is designed to conduct mine detection and clearance operations using a remote-controlled mine hunting sonar and an autonomous mine neutralization system. The concept design was completed last December by Hanwha Ocean, highlighting the navy’s commitment to enhancing its mine warfare capabilities through unmanned technology.
The newly revealed mine warfare USV has an approximate length of 12 meters, a beam of 3.2 meters, and a displacement of under 100 tons. Equipped with state-of-the-art sensors and autonomous navigation capabilities, the USV is expected to operate with minimal human intervention while effectively neutralizing naval mines. Its modular design allows for potential upgrades and integration with other unmanned systems in the future. Additionally, the longer design of the mine-warfare USV demonstrates its capability to carry and operate multiple mission systems simultaneously.
Among its various mission roles, which include reconnaissance, rescue, and combat, mine warfare is a key focus for this unmanned asset. Deploying unmanned systems for mine countermeasures reduces risks to human operators and enhances the navy’s overall operational effectiveness in littoral and high-risk environments. As the threat of naval mines remains a significant challenge, particularly in the waters around the Korean Peninsula, military experts emphasize the necessity of strengthening mine countermeasure capabilities.
According to Dr. Raul Pedrozo of the U.S. Naval War College, in his KIMS (Korea Institute for Maritime Strategy) Periscope publication, North Korea asymmetrically relies on naval mines, while both the Republic of Korea and U.S. navies lack sufficient modern mine-clearing assets. Given the potential for naval mines to severely disrupt ROK Marine Corps amphibious operations and naval fleet maneuverability during a conflict, there has been a concerted effort to develop advanced mine countermeasure assets, technologies, and combat systems to address this critical gap.
To mitigate these challenges, South Korea is actively developing and integrating a range of mine countermeasure platforms alongside the mine-warfare USV. This includes Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), designed to search for and assess the surrounding mine-warfare environment, and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), which specialize in mine neutralization. Additionally, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) is developing a mine countermeasure helicopter based on the MUH-1 Marineon to further enhance the navy’s ability to detect and neutralize naval mines from the air.
