Royal Navy selects iXBlue MARINS M7

iXBlue has been selected to provide 70 MARINS M7 inertial navigation systems (INS) to the Royal Navy's ships and submarines, under a five-year contract to partner Lockheed Martin UK, it announced on 18 May.

iXBlue's MARINS M7 INS will equip 35 major surface ships and submarines under the Navigation Compass Programme (NCP).

These include the fourth Astute-class nuclear-power submarine and both the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers. They mark the first steps by the UK defence ministry towards the adoption of iXBlue Fiber Optic Gyroscope (FOG) technology.

The 70 MARINS M7 will replace the older, obsolete gyro systems being used on the naval ships, including the Sandown and Hunt class mine countermeasure vessels, Type 23 Frigates and submarines. Lockheed Martin UK will integrate the INS within the on-board compass system.

Robert Kramer, vice-president of Lockheed Martin UK – Integrated Systems, said: 'We conducted a detailed assessment of all available possible partners along with their proposed technologies. By precisely understanding the royal navy expectations and assessing their views on the industry leading suppliers, it clearly appeared that iXBlue’s solutions best fitted the needs in terms of performance, capability and cost.'

The MARINS M7 offers a drift below 1nm in 72 hours of submarine dived or surface GNSS-denied navigation. iXBlue's military-grade MARINS M3, M5 and M7 FOG INS are the latest naval products in the company's range.