Maritime drones against mines: Thales delivers first autonomous mine-hunting system to the Royal Navy

French company Thales is reporting a success: a few days ago it announced that it will deliver to the British Royal Navy the first mine-hunting system to operate fully autonomously – a combination of maritime drones and sonar technology. This was made possible by the MMCM (Maritime Mine Counter Measures) project, which France and the United Kingdom run jointly under the auspices of the Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation (OCCAR).

With the autonomous mine hunters, those serving aboard the ships face drastically lower risk. At the same time, they help secure sea lanes that are important to the global economy.

What the maritime drone systems include

The Royal Navy will receive four systems – the first – in the course of this year. Each consists of several integrated pieces of equipment and subsystems that allow numerous missions:

• an unmanned surface vessel (USV),
• an advanced towed sonar (TSAM), complemented by a state-of-the-art multi-view sonar (SAMDIS),
• a remotely operated vehicle (ROV),
• a lightweight operations centre (e-POC).

All components are backed by a securely designed command and control system.

Maria Eagle, the UK Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, commented on the delivery: “This delivery is a significant milestone for our mine-hunting capabilities, and the autonomous technology will make the UK and Royal Navy sailors safer by identifying and removing mines. It has also created hundreds of skilled jobs in British industry – clear proof that defence is an engine of economic growth.”

The platforms can process large volumes of data because they use autonomous, cyber-secure drones equipped with artificial intelligence (AI). They are supported by Mi-Map, a new sonar analysis application developed in-house by Thales. According to the company, it analyses sonar data up to four times faster, “thereby enabling operators to accelerate the process of identifying and neutralising mines”. The autonomous mine hunters can be deployed both from a mother ship and from shore bases.

Speaking for Thales in the UK, CEO Phil Siveter said: “We are very proud to deliver the world’s first autonomous mine-hunting system to the Royal Navy. With the introduction of artificial intelligence and advanced sensor technology, this innovation ushers in a new era in naval defence and underlines our relentless commitment to delivering cutting-edge solutions that enhance the capabilities of our armed forces. The Royal Navy now has a powerful tool to protect its national interests and maintain maritime security.”