Lockheed Martin Expands Missions for Littoral Craft Concept

Sea Power, Nov 2004 by Burgess, Richard R

Lockheed Martin has expanded yet again the missions proposed for its Covert High-Speed Attack & Reconnaissance Craft (CHARC). Originally envisioned primarily as a surface warfare platform, Lockheed has added the support of Special Operations Forces and, subsequently, littoral antisubmarine warfare and mine countermeasures to its repertoire. An unmanned version also is under consideration.

The agile, swift CHARC may be ideal as a craft to counter submarines or swarms of small boats with a limited "dash-and-pounce" capability. The CHARC also could be used for over-the-horizon control of unmanned aerial, surface or unmanned underwater vehicles for a variety of intelligence, surveillance or reconnaissance missions.

George Root, director of advanced programs for the company's Littoral Ships and Systems, the same unit of Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors that is developing the company's Littoral Combat Ship design, told Sea Power the CHARC was initially "designed and optimized" to support one of Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Vern Clark's top five priorities - force protection - by countering asymmetric threats.

Still in the blueprint stage, the CHARC concept originated in the 2002 Fleet Battle Experiment Juliet, sponsored by the Naval Warfare Development Center, off San Clemente Island, Calif. The company's Sea Slice small waterplane area, twin-hull (SWATH) craft was tasked to counter a swarm of six small boats attacking a destroyer, and was credited with simulated destruction of four of them before being "sunk" itself.

Root noted that the Navy's concept of operations envisions armed helicopters to counter boat swarms, but "in an arena when a small craft is ever-present, you have to have that helicopter capability 24/7," which is not always practical given the expense and particulars of helicopter operations. The company proposed a craft that could "sit on water and wait out the bad guys, and could force engagement away from the ship."

The CHARC is an eclectic blend of technology derived from such diverse platforms as the Sea Shadow and Sea Slice experimental ships, the Kilo Moana SWATH oceanographic research ship and the Air Force's F-117 stealthy strike fighter. Its attributes are to include tactical agility, multitarget engagement capability, weapons versatility and low signature.

It strikes the eye as a design inspired by "Star Wars" movies.

The upper hull features a two-man cockpit similar to that of a helicopter gunship, complete with two remotely operated three-barrel rapid-fire cannons. The cockpit will be protected by the most advanced multilayer armor, Root said.

The craft's upper hull is connected by two strut-like middle hull sections to two 5-foot-diameter pods in a catamaran-like configuration, a manifestation of the SWATH technology used in the Sea Slice demonstration craft. The upper hull structure to the rear of the cockpit is available for transporting special operations troops or modular mission payloads. The pods house the propulsion systems and compartments to carry mission systems such as antisubmarine torpedoes, inflatable rubber boats or autonomous underwater vehicles.

Envisioned as a craft capable of smooth operations at various sea states and water depths, CHARC's hull allows it to ride high in the water at low speeds, low in the water for loiter and reconnaissance or at medium height for high-speed operation. The craft's pylons are hinged to allow a more horizontal configuration for very shallow water operation or beaching. The hinges also allow for compact storage on board a ship.

The CHARC is designed to be launched from a mother ship in littoral areas. Its pods will be equipped with wheels for taxiing or parking on shore or in well decks of amphibious warfare ships.

Root said the SWATH hull technology is a solution to the medical problems encountered by Special Operations Forces that are believed to result from the sustained pounding experienced in boats such as the Mark V craft used by Navy SEALs. A SWATH hull with pods submerged, but with the upper hull riding out of the water, offers a consistently smooth ride, Root said.

"We're offering the avoidance of shock rather than mitigation. A SWATH craft has to be tall to keep water from hitting the hull in high seas," he said. The lower-hull pods offer stability even in 10-foot seas.

Root said CHARC "was always envisioned as manned or unmanned or both," and that the two variants might operate "synchronously." He also envisions the CHARC being used in conjunction with low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles in a littoral environment as a means to extend their range.

So far, development of the CHARC is being funded solely by company resources. To date, Lockheed has invested $2 million. Root said he is working to obtain more company funds for further development. Weapons integration testing of surface-to-surface Hellfire missiles, scheduled for November and December, has been "scoped back," but will include laser designation testing.

One development that bodes well for the CHARC is the recent reorganization within Lockheed Martin of its Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) team and its absorption of the Marine Systems unit to form the Littoral Ships and Systems unit of Maritime Systems & Sensors. Root said he expects CHARC development will benefit from the company's LCS mission module spiral-development work funded by the Navy.