It is common knowledge that mines have damaged more U.S. Navy ships than any other weapon since World War II. During the same period, however, the Navy's focus on Mine Warfare has waxed and waned. The looming possibility of Iranian mines closing the Strait of Hormuz has once again put mine-countermeasures (MCM) on the upswing. The Navy's future MCM force will be based on the Littoral Combat Ship and her MCM mission package which has yet to be deployed operationally. In the meanwhile, the venerable fleet of Avenger Class minesweepers will provide the bulk of this important capability. Four of the fiberglass-sheathed, wooden-hulled MCMs arrived in the Gulf in June to bolster the four ships already forward deployed to Bahrain. Although the average age of these ships is over 23 years, their hull, mechanical, electrical, and combat systems suites were recently modernized. The installation of new unmanned systems are another way the Navy has chosen to enhance the aging ships' capability.
The Avenger's obsolete and prone to break-down AN/SLQ-48 Mine Neutralization System (MNS) is being replaced with the Expendable Mine Neutralization System (EMNS), based on BAE Systems' Archerfish mine neutralization system. The fiber-optically guided EMNS uses a high frequency sonar and low light video camera to detect mines, which are then neutralized with a shaped charge. Replacing the legacy the MNS with EMNS will also save over 15 tons in weight on each ship.
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Checking an aircraft for damage can be arduous and meticulous work, but last week’s issue of The Economist highlights an experimental commercial approach. In simple terms, the Remote Intelligent Survey Equipment for Radiation ( RISER ) drone is a quadcopter with LIDAR and forms the basis for a system to use lasers to automatically detect damage to airliners. The obvious naval application for inspector drones would be for ground-, carrier, and surface vessel-based fixed-wing and helicopter units, although the configurations for each aircraft type and location might make some more practical than others. For example it probably makes more sense to consolidate expertise in inspector drones at regional maintenance and readiness centers than to try to outfit a unit in the small helicopter hangar of every destroyer. But there’s always something to be said for an operational capability. While The Economist notes that the drones are allowed at Luton airport, UK, to “operate only
On December 15th 2016, the Chinese Navy seized an American unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) operating in international waters off the Western coast of the Philippines. The USNS Bowditch , an unarmed T-AGS class hydro-graphic survey ship, was being shadowed by a People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) salvage vessel identified as a Dalang-III class (ASR-510). Graphic by: CIMSEC Member Louis MV The UUV had surfaced as part of a pre-programmed instruction, and sent a radio signal marking it’s position for pick-up. As the Bowditch was preparing to recover the drone from the water, a small boat crew from the Dalang III raced in and plucked the unmanned vessel. The incident occurred approximately 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic, Luzon. While the exact type of drone is unknown, there have been several instances of U.S. Navy Slocum Gliders snagged in local fishermens’ nets or washed ashore on beaches in the Philippines. This type of drone is not weaponized, and is used to c
has waxed and waned. The looming possibility of Iranian mines closing the Strait of Hormuz has once again put mine-countermeasures (MCM) on the upswing. The Navy's future MCM force will be based on the Littoral Combat Ship and her MCM mission package which has yet to be deployed operationally. In the meanwhile, the venerable fleet of Avenger Class minesweepers will provide the bulk of this important capability. Four of the fiberglass-sheathed, wooden-hulled MCMs arrived in the Gulf in June to bolster the four ships already forward deployed to Bahrain. Although the average age of these ships is over 23 years, their hull, mechanical, electrical, and combat systems suites were recently modernized. The installation of new unmanned systems are another way the Navy has chosen to enhance the aging ships' capability.
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