Royal Navy Accepts Unmanned Minesweeping System Into Service

 

The UK  has joined the small club of militaries with an unmanned vessel system in front-line service. Ukraine's navy is built on unmanned systems; the U.S. Navy uses unmanned vessels for surveillance missions in the Arabian Gulf; and now, the Royal Navy has accepted its long-awaited crewless minesweeping system into service. 

The UK is sunsetting its manned mine countermeasures vessels and transferring the responsibilities to new unmanned-vessel units. One of the capabilities in the portfolio is a system-of-systems called SWEEP - an uncrewed surface vehicle that tows a combination of three sophisticated minesweeping systems on small pontoon floats. Atlas UK developed the package in conjunction with UK Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S). The first system was scheduled for delivery in 2022, with an extensive period of operational evaluation to follow. 

The Royal Navy says that SWEEP can fool high-end digitally-controlled sea mines into detonating, eliminating the threat before a manned vessel - a warship, merchant ship or submarine - comes anywhere near the minefield. 

“The portable, flexible system is vital to protecting ships from modern mine threats, operated remotely from land or sea, it will keep our sailors out of danger and will restore a minesweeping capability the Royal Navy has lacked since 2005," said Jonathan Reed-Beviere, Mine Hunting Capability Programme Director for the Royal Navy. 

SWEEP's capabilities will be used alongside the service's other unmanned mine countermeasures systems, the Maritime Mine Counter Measures (MMCM) system and Atlas' SeaCat minehunting AUV. The Royal Navy has acquired a civilian offshore vessel to provide transportation and support for these missions.