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Posted by thm 7/6/2025

Colombia seizes first unmanned narco-submarine with Starlink antenna(www.france24.com)
158 points | 183 commentspage 2
Roark66 7/6/2025|
Next one will lie 300km of it's own fiber optic cable.
cyanydeez 7/6/2025|
The next one after that will have a hologram of donald trump and atomatically try to bribe the officials with a detention center and bitcoins.
tczMUFlmoNk 7/6/2025||
Fascinating. Does the Starlink antenna work well underwater? Or was this sub surfacing to communicate?
poink 7/6/2025||
Narco subs are mostly/entirely submerged to reduce visibility, but they almost all still operate at the surface
threemux 7/6/2025|||
It's not a submarine and I wish news outlets would stop saying "narco sub". It's a surface vessel designed to have only a very small part above water. Building an actual submarine capable of submerged travel for lengthy periods is quite difficult.
progre 7/6/2025|||
The wavelengths used in satelite communication are entirely absorbed by water. I think the sub would have to surface to use the antenna.
more_corn 7/6/2025||
Semi-submersible wild be a more accurate description. Most of the boat is under water, usually only an inch or so down so it’s hard to see from a boat.
thakoppno 7/6/2025||
I wonder if the alleged perpetrators are reading this thread? Are there any comments that would help with the next revision?

I think both conjectures are likely true.

0cf8612b2e1e 7/6/2025||
I am wondering why they used the link so much that it was able to be used against them. Submersible loses benefits if it requires an external service.

Launch. Submerge. Drunkenly move in the direction of the destination. If N days since last check-in and/or uncertainty in location, ping mothership. Repeat. Only lean on communication channel for final handoff stage.

immibis 7/6/2025||
> Launch. Submerge. Drunkenly

I thought they were smuggling cocaine, not acid.

(this is like the second time this week someone has spelled out LSD on HN and it's been relevant)

more_corn 7/6/2025||
To that end I suspect that tracking starlink used in an unmanned narco sub would be trivial for an insider at the company. My first thought was “I wonder if the movement and activity pattern would be unique. Yes probably. If unique could a script be run to pinpoint them? Yes probably.” If law enforcement has tasked someone with doing this (likely and legal) there’s high likelihood that any future narcosub using starlink will be intercepted. So to anyone on either side of this arms race: “you’re welcome”
aussieguy1234 7/6/2025||
I thought drone delivery was years off, but I guess that only matters if the law is being followed.
taneq 7/6/2025||
Like most things, the tech is ahead of the legislation. ;)
thaumasiotes 7/6/2025||
Drone delivery is a pretty different thing. Drones are clearly visible to everyone. Submarines are... not that.
LexGray 7/6/2025|||
Wikipedia says unmanned underwater vehicles fall in the drone category as do unmanned surface vehicles.

Speaking of which does Ukraine use weaponized RC vehicles and roaming unmanned anti-ship subs? I would think you would get a larger payload and better damage from the undercarriage.

thephyber 7/6/2025||||
I think you are making mental assumptions that aren’t justified.

Narco drone subs are delivery vehicles, just not for the “last mile” to the end user. They are more like self-driving long haul trucks that don’t care about international borders.

Archonical 7/6/2025|||
I think the person you are replying to was making a joke.
yieldcrv 7/6/2025||
one thing I like about permissionless finance is that operations like these can be publicly traded, specifically for aggregate forecasts of value and price discovery

I dont like how publicly traded status is put on a pedestal and treated like a reward

everything should have price discovery

atonse 7/6/2025||
What’s the purpose of starlink? Can’t be for GPS?
thephyber 7/6/2025||
Remote command & control.

Drone submarine doesn’t require life support systems so it can be smaller, simpler, and stay submerged longer.

selkin 7/6/2025||
Only this isn’t a submarine, as it operates at surface and doesn’t dive. This is semi-submersible. When built right, it’s hard to detect from a boat.

I guess the goal of automation here is like it always is: remove the cost of human labor.

inemesitaffia 7/6/2025|||
Search "Magura drone boat Ukraine"
madaxe_again 7/6/2025||
It’s a space based data network, used for internet access.
atonse 7/6/2025||
Right I get that. Sorry my question wasn’t clear.

But you could theoretically build a drone that would guide itself to a destination with just GPS right? It would potentially be even easier with water?

Do you even need the two way command and control?

15155 7/6/2025||
In theory, yes, in practice this probably requires engineering beyond what is available to these organizations (or the cost profile of the vessel.)

These aren't autonomous true submarines, they're semi-submersibles. Weather and surface conditions will vary (potentially greatly) along the route.

yieldcrv 7/6/2025||
Decoy
LargoLasskhyfv 7/6/2025|
George Foy - Contraband

Bokon Taylay!