US and European special operators test Icelandic AI-based solution for marine platforms
Hefring Marine IMAS was designed to optimise vessels’ operation.
The Royal Navy’s mine hunter HMS Bangor has returned to its home port of HM Naval Base Clyde on 31 August following a three-year deployment in the Gulf.
The Sandown class vessel and Crew 2 from the Faslane-based First Mine Counter Measures Squadron (MCM1) worked alongside US, French, Omani and Kuwaiti allies in the region conducting seabed surveys and on the lookout for maritime mines.
In March the ship joined RFA Cardigan Bay and HMS Ledbury to participate in Khunjar Hadd (Sharp Dagger) which helped test the ability of the navies to work alongside one another.
One of seven Sandown class mine hunters, Bangor is almost entirely made from non-magnetic materials, to counteract the threat from magnetic mines. The class is equipped with the Seafox mine disposal system and a highly-trained team of Royal Navy Clearance Divers who can descend to the seabed to place small explosive charges on ordnance.
Hefring Marine IMAS was designed to optimise vessels’ operation.
The small, unmanned surface vehicle will operate this year in multiple operations and military exercises worldwide.
The contract was awarded to HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) division and General Dynamics Electric Boat (GDEB). As well as for the building of the boats, contract money will also go towards improving productivity at the shipyards, workforce support and other investment.
The approved purchase is for Tomahawk Block IV and Block V missiles, control systems, telemetry missiles and communication and broadcast systems.
The Philippine Navy is fast-tracking its maritime modernisation with new warships, unmanned platforms, and international shipbuilding partnerships to bolster its regional deterrence posture.
Taiwan is strengthening its deterrence against the PLA through an asymmetric arsenal that includes fast mine-laying vessels and domestically developed UAVs.