Camcopter S-100 in Portugal: Schiebel shows submarine hunting and mine countermeasures at NATO exercises

With the Camcopter S-100, Schiebel successfully demonstrated several solutions at the exercises “Repmus” (Robotic Experimentation and Prototyping using Maritime Uncrewed Systems) and “Dynamic Messenger 2023”, both held in Portugal, the company said in a press release. The demonstrations covered anti-submarine warfare (ASW) using sonobuoys, bathymetric scans for rapid environmental assessment (REA), mine countermeasures (MCM) and the deployment of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV).

During the month-long major NATO exercise, Schiebel says it used a range of sensors and payloads; the Camcopter S-100 could be reconfigured between missions.

Sonobuoys and LiDAR: Camcopter S-100 against submarines and mines

At “Repmus”, Schiebel and Thales focused on relaying data from sonobuoys. This year the S-100 was fitted with a sonobuoy dispenser that successfully dropped NATO-standard size G sonobuoys. The press release states: “The combination of these two capabilities enables the Schiebel unmanned aircraft system (UAS) to offer an end-to-end solution for ASW”.

For mine countermeasures, Schiebel and Thales demonstrated the VQ-840-G LiDAR from Austria’s Riegl on the Camcopter S-100. According to the press release: “Thanks to the open architecture of the Thales MCM Mission Management System (M-CUBE), which allows fast and flexible integration of third-party sensors, the Camcopter S-100 was able to conduct a complete airborne MCM mine-hunting mission and achieve 100 per cent detection of all mine targets.”

Underwater vehicles from the cargo hook

Schiebel also showed how the system supports demanding REA missions: the Yuco AUV from France’s Seaber and Teledyne’s APEX float were deployed from the S-100’s cargo hook to build a bathymetric picture. US company Areté contributed the integrated Fugro Rapid Airborne Multibeam Mapping System (RAMMS). Above all, it closed the gap in the surf zone, where surface craft cannot safely venture.

The NATO exercise also featured unmanned-unmanned teaming (U-UT): the S-100 relayed data from an Alseamar Seaexplorer underwater glider to a combat management system (CMS). This confirmed that the underwater vehicle can operate without satellite coverage.

Hans Georg Schiebel, Chairman of the Schiebel Group, summed up: “The NATO exercises ‘Repmus’ and ‘Dynamic Messenger’ were exceptional opportunities for us to demonstrate our innovative capabilities. Once again, the S-100 proved that it can support the latest maritime defence solutions such as ASW and MCM, delivering capabilities that are in high demand on the market”.

“Once again, the S-100 proved that it can support the latest maritime defence solutions such as ASW and MCM, delivering capabilities that are in high demand on the market.”
Schiebel chief Hans Georg Schiebel

Schiebel’s partners at both exercises were Thales, Riegl, Fugro, Areté, Seaber (Yuco), Alseamar (Seaexplorer) and Teledyne (APEX). The British Royal Navy and the US Office of Naval Research jointly sponsored the S-100’s participation. “Repmus” and “Dynamic Messenger” were hosted by the Portuguese Navy.