Robotics can’t rival these warriors of the sea

A two-decade veteran of the US Navy says there will always be a role for sailors in defence despite the arrival of unmanned submarines and nuclear warfare.

US Navy Sailors at the Fleet Base West in Rockingham, Western Australia.

Australia and other nations may well be looking towards a future navy centred increasingly around unmanned ships. But after a 20-year career that has culminated in him being put at the helm of one of the deadliest vessels in the US Navy, James Tuthill has no doubt that there will always be a critical role for sailors in defending the world’s seas.

Tuthill is the commanding officer of the USS Annapolis, the ­latest American nuclear-powered submarine to call into HMAS Stirling naval base south of Perth since Australia, the US and the UK signed the AUKUS deal that will see Australia secure its first nuclear-powered subs of its own.

Tuthill has been responsible for the 155 sailors who call the USS Annapolis home for the past three years. The nuclear submarines of the US Navy are the most technically advanced in a world that is increasingly pivoting towards ­automated systems and artificial intelligence, but Tuthill says there is no substitute for the talents and abilities that his crew brings.

“The thing that makes us successful is the crew I have, and those trained operators applying their judgment and experience in a disciplined way according to procedures,” he says.

“There are things that they do that computers can’t do.”

The USS Annapolis is a Los Angeles-class sub, the predecessor of the Virginia-class boats that Australia will buy under AUKUS.

Visits to Australia by US submarines are becoming increasingly common as the US looks to share the skills Australia will need to develop in readiness for its first AUKUS subs.

The visit comes amid reports that the US would now build only one new Virginia-class sub next year instead of the two originally planned. The US is ramping up production of the Virignia-class so existing boats can be passed on to Australia in the 2030s.

At the same time as visits look to build familiarity and skills among the Australian sailors at HMAS Stirling, dozens of Australians are at the US base in Guam gaining experience on board a US submarine.

Tuthill says the aim of the visit is to help prepare Australia for its first AUKUS sub, which is scheduled to arrive next decade.

“Our goal is to interact, to raise interoperability, to have a good transparent discussion about training and tactics and maintenance on our warship, and increase presence to help build the ­alliance,” he says.

The AUKUS deal will lead to a significant increase in the number of Australian submariners, while the nuclear propulsion system will require at least some of those new submariners to have a higher level of technical training than historically required by the navy.

Commodore Tom Phillips, the commander of Australia’s submarine force, is well aware of the recruitment challenges ahead.

He says visits such as that by the USS Annapolis are a key part of the first phase of the AUKUS transition.

“Every time they come here, we use every opportunity we can to train our guys on this,” Phillips says.

“Later in the year, we’ll have a tender vessel that will do a longer maintenance period with our Australian sailors working on that.”