running. >> reporter: it's controlled from the surface running this joystick. >> i'm coming around now. >> reporter: has lights to illuminate the stark black of the ocean deep. cameras transmitting back footage in realtime. >> hydraulics on. >> reporter: and high-frequency sonar to combat the notoriously difficult visibility in the area of the indian ocean where the plane is believed to be. but most importantly, the rov has robotic arms called manipulators. >> the arm has jaws, you can open and close the jaws. >> reporter: they are essentially mechanical hands, able to retrieve objects from the ocean floor, far deeper than any human could withstand. >> stand and retract. >> reporter: a second manipulator can be equipped with tools for cutting through metal such as on the fuselage of a plane. >> it would be ideal for a black box, not a problem at all to pick it up, put it in a basket