Taiwan Has a New Unmanned Sub, And it Has Torpedo Tubes

Taiwanese media outlets have captured early images of sea trials for the country's new Huilong-class unmanned submarine, revealing a rare feature for a UUV: torpedo tubes. 

The prototype Huilong is an estimated 100 feet long and displaces about 100 tonnes, making it slightly larger than the U.S. Navy/Boeing XLUUV project. It has a conventional sail, unlike XLUUV, and a quiet and efficient X-shaped rudder. In 2022, local reports on the sub's development suggested that it had room for several (optional) crewmembers aboard, indicating at least some pressurized inhabitable compartments - a design not found on XLUUV or other unmanned submersibles. 

The mini-sub's developers - technical institute NCIST and Lungteh Shipbuilding - conducted a set of sea trials last week displaying the vessel in public. Local enthusiasts captured imagery showing the prototype in and out of the water, including its propeller design (typically kept secret on operational subs) and two torpedo tubes at the bow. 

Military enthusiasts have captured photos of Taiwan’s domestically developed "Huilong" unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) with torpedo tubes, revealing potential combat capabilities. pic.twitter.com/uBZ3AAGbCN

— TaiwanPlus News (@taiwanplusnews) October 24, 2024

It is not known whether Huilong will have an unmanned capability to launch torpedoes, but the tubes could also provide the sub with a standardized hatch for deploying other payloads - like smaller UUVs, sensors or submarine-laid mines.

However, it is possible that the design will never be used operationally: according to the Taiwanese government, the Huilong is a test article, not an actual asset. The sub is designed to serve as a platform for equipment trials for components of Taiwan's locally-built manned submarine, the new Hai Kun class, national defense minister Gu Lixiong said earlier this year.