Department of Defense - Stiletto High Tech Water Craft

The "Stiletto," a shallow-water craft made of a tough, lightweight carbon composite material, offers a safer, more comfortable ride and is easily reconfigured to accommodate technological advances and the military's needs, said Navy Cmdr. Greg E. Glaros, a transformation strategist in the Office of Force Transformation.

Stiletto was initiated in the DoD transformation office in association with U.S. Special Operations Command, he said. When fielded, the boat will be available for use my all services. It's meant to get special operations forces to their missions quickly with a top speed of more than 50 knots, Glaros said. Those forces, a total of 15 per boat, also could benefit from its unusual hull design.

Described as an "M-hull" because of its resemblance to the letter "M," the water Stiletto displaces is pulled through tunnels under the boat. The water mixes with incoming air from the forward movement of the craft and creates an air cushion that the boat rides on, he said.

Glaros said this cushion could be a back-saving benefit for those using Stiletto for transport. The vertical impact to the neck and the spine from riding on a traditional small transport craft have been likened to a "10-G shock," or the body suddenly weighing 10 times its own weight, at least twice an hour, he said. If a seat fails, that shock can spike to 20 Gs.

Stiletto's other purposes include what Glaros describes as "techno exploration." Basically, he said, the boat is a floating experiment. The office wanted to understand the uses and the limits of composite materials in this type of application.

The boat's design also anticipates advances in technology, he said. "In our world today, the most powerful element is information," Glaros said. "For us, it would be folly to build anything that didn't have the means with which to connect to the outer world."

Stiletto's "electronic keel" provides that connection, he said. The system offers open access to its network for various uses by all services, Glaros said. Its plug-and-play nature makes it adaptable to advancing technologies.

While any force can customize the hull for a specific purpose, Glaros said, it was designed with servicemembers in mind. "They're at the heart of this," he said. "Give them something that they can change and manipulate on their own and doesn't damage them more than the enemy."

Fifteen months after the contract to build Stiletto was signed, the boat is considered "operational experimental," Glaros said, though he is uncertain when it will be fielded. The boat will be put through its paces with Naval Special Clearance Team 1 in early May.

To date, the ship has cost about $12.5 million, Glaros said. About one-fourth of that went to building computer-aided models and more operational testing.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• DoD
• Stiletto
• Boat
• watercraft
• war

[HazeGreyAndUnderway]

nope, too big a risk of lead poisoning in the Chinese one.

[cy156326]

i don't think the chinese version is better. honestly speaking, the european and U.S. lead in stealth technology especially in boats.

[211Alucard]

They copy the Chinese.The Chinese is a much better ship.

[NamVetBuck]

"The majority of the people of the armed forces " have NOT chosen the path "to die", they have decided that the enemies of America are too dangerous to let live , therefore they terminate them in great numbers, more than those gallant warriors succumb themselves.

For "respecting" the military, you sure seem to forget who it is that protects your freedom to spout PETA crap here.

[NamVetBuck]

I've disproved your statement that animals have no relation to humans , stated a small number of medical achievements animal research has benefitted humans , and yet you say animal testing "is immoral ":... that means you ignore facts and logic.

Conclusion : you base your responses and positions on emotions , rather than factual grounding for them = liberal.

Ya can't talk sensibly with a liberal...about ANYTHING !

[Gtrplyr1]

yea but keeping an animal alive in the heat of battle has no similarity to human survival, different animals are affected by trauma in different ways. Nothing said can make it moral or respectable. Why not test on actual humans, the scum of the earth in the middle east? Yes soldiers die in battle and it is sad the majority of the people in the armed forcces chose that path.

[NamVetBuck]

Wrong ! Pig aortic valves have been transplanted into humans {my dad got one in 1998} , primates like monkeys and chimps are used in immune studies because they have 99 % of the same genes we do. Vaccines are developed using horse serum. Mice are used to host tumors to try out cancer vaccines.

There have been studies done on animals to see what kind of armor vests work , gunshot wound treatment , and a host of other things that directly affect soldiers battlefield survival.

[Gtrplyr1]

Well animal genetics and biological makeup have no relation at all to man. The bodies of both animal and man can not be compared. Different hormones, cells, brain makeup etc. So in actuality not only is it inhuman, but it is completely unnecessary.

[NamVetBuck]

Not as sick as a mother , wife , or family member standing next to a grave of a KIA soldier that might have been saved if a lab animal had provided the answer to saving the soldiers life. Get real,,,,what's more important ? I'll go with a human life every time.

[Gtrplyr1]

well what does animal genetics, I respect the military, but that is kind of sick man...

[NamVetBuck]

Better the animal dies so that a live American soldier comes back from the battlefield...the stupid animals are NOT gonna defend your freedom to be an idiot....you will be dead .

[Gtrplyr1]

yeah i know but im not

[spartan1080]

you sound like a fuckin peta member.

[Gtrplyr1]

Department of defense kills innocent animals.. They shoot, burn and poison animals to train soldiers on ways to prolong life in the battle field..

[wertziouk]

and subs the germans have the best ones, not sure if thats a good thing though

[Cta2006]

Why buy the Swedish Visby class, when you can buy the " Skjold Class " of the Norwegian navy. Made and designed in Norway, it's the fastest warship in the world, going in excess of 60 knots. It's stealth and larger than the Stiletto. Search for the " Skjold class " here on youtube.

[saawordup]

pretty cool looking too...

[HazeGreyAndUnderway]

thanks :)

[gizkoj]

Hazegrey..... Hahahaha Good one!!

[2HEXJUMPER]

it's a strategic stealth utensile for SPECIAL operations...whom best are not detected by the enemy.

catch my drift ?

:))

[theunknownknows]

For insertion/extraction of SpecOps or intelligence personnel etc? No need for 16 inch guns there.

[cy156326]

oh, like there isn't a boat that can withstand torpedos and antiship missiles. seriously, whow, you're talking out of your ass

[asianwong]

i think the chinese one is better

[SgtDrDeath]

This craft is a copy of the Swedish "Smyge" craft.

US should buy the Visby stelth corvett, it is operational an awesome!

[tomtos2000]

only $90 of RPG could able to sink it down... $300 of torpedos could sink it fast... $400 of anti-ship missile could able to sink that ship fast...