Crewless mine hunters for Royal Navy in £184m investment

Crewless surface vessels will be built following an investment of £184m into the Maritime Mine Counter Measures programme, defence secretary Ben Wallace has announced.

Through this project, a joint British and French production contract will culminate in the autonomous kit being deployed in support of global Royal Navy operations.

Following successful a demonstration phase and trials completed this year, the new contract will produce three sets of minehunting equipment, consisting of an autonomous vessel, towed sonar and a mine neutralisation system.

When used together, these three elements are known as the Primary System. This next-generation autonomous minehunting system is designed to replace conventional crewed minehunting vessels, such as the Royal Navy’s Hunt and Sandown class ships, with autonomous systems.

The investment will see around 215 jobs supported in Thales sites in Somerset and Plymouth, as well as the wider supply chain including L3 Harris in Portsmouth, Stonehaven in Aberdeen, and Alba Ultrasound in Glasgow.

Three sets of equipment will be bought comprising a portable operation centre, an autonomous surface vessel, towed sonar and a mine neutralisation system.

“This £184m contract offers a huge leap forward for the Royal Navy’s autonomous capabilities in the detection and defeat of sea mines. These systems will protect vital shipping lanes, commercial traffic and our personnel from these deadly devices,” Wallace says.

“The programme also underpins a deep and ever-strengthening relationship with France and marks the tenth anniversary of the Lancaster House treaties between our two nations.”

The Royal Navy says it is the world leader in mine countermeasures, having been regularly called upon to deal with mines and other historic ordnance, left over from the Second World War, around the UK.

“The emerging technology associated with these Maritime Autonomous Systems are designed to replace the minehunters in the decade ahead, who have served the Royal Navy so well over the years,” says Commander Steve White, who is involved in the MCM programme.

“Our professional sailors who serve in these ships will transfer their skillsets across to these new systems and continue to provide the human decision-making interface, however they will be displaced further away from any mine threat making this new system far safer for them.”