Covert Shore has an update on Houthi One Way Attack Uncrewed Surface Vessels (OWA-USV).

Comparisons are made to their Ukranian counterparts, but the Houthi systems are less sophisticated.

“Unlike the fully autonomous Ukrainian craft, Houthi USVs require a human pilot to navigate to the start line of the attack. After that the pilot transfers to another vessel. Consequently, these USVs retain a cockpit…The Houthis also rely on motherships, which tow the USVs on longer missions, pick up the pilots, and also provide command and control during the attack. This is a comparative weak point.”

If there is a terrorist attack on a US port using an OWA-USV, it is most likely to use this model. It will likely be improvised and could be anything from a personal watercraft to a yacht. It will probably look innocuous. Like the recent Houthi attack, it is like to have a crew of dummy figures to make it look populated.

Unlike the Houthi attacks on ships at sea, an attack on a port could be remotely controlled from shore.

These are effectively a poor man’s torpedo. As the post notes,

“USVs generally carry a larger warhead which detonates at or close up the waterline. They are also generally able to target weak points on a ship where this can have the biggest impact…”

In a port, the target may not be a ship. Other targets like a bridge, tunnel, or pipeline, may also be accessible.