Mine countermeasures: the future belongs to the drones

Mines are still strategic weapons for navies: easy to deploy, formidable and inexpensive. The mining of coastal approaches, to guard against enemy intrusion attempts or, conversely, to keep a fleet in port or hinder ships’ freedom of movement in narrow straits, is naturally a concern for any navy seeking to protect its vessels’ ability to manoeuvre on and beneath the surface. Admittedly, while minefields were laid intensively during World War Two, it happens far less frequently nowadays. But mines remain a legitimate source of concern for many states.

his is true of the French and British navies. They need to ensure that no explosive devices are concealed in the approaches to their naval bases — in particular those where their ballistic missile submarines are stationed. They also have to protect their vessels during power or force projection operations in some theatres. As the uncontested leaders in this field, France and the UK have developed state-of-the-art mine detection and destruction technologies. They are now preparing to make a major new technological leap by entrusting the neutralisation of mines to drones, thereby avoiding putting crews, superbly trained though they might be, into contact with these extremely powerful and dangerous devices. That is the philosophy behind the MMCM (Maritime Mine Counter Measures) programme initiated in March 2015 by Paris and London.

Thales Underwater Systems: segment leader

By virtue of its Franco-British identity, the Thales group, whose technology equips half of minehunters around the world, is central to the MMCM(1) programme, as part of which it will be able to deploy all of the automated technologies developed in its Pathmaster project.

SAMDIS’s multi aspect functionality is currently the only technology that can classify sonar echoes in a single sweep.

Having developed hull sonar, variable-depth sonar and the fully automated drone Launch and Retrieval System (LARS), Thales has devised SAMDIS (Synthetic Aperture and Mine Detection Imagery Sonar), a system with multiview capability intended chiefly for deployment by AUV (Autonomous Underwater System). SAMDIS represents a real breakthrough in mine countermeasures, a sector that was previously the exclusive preserve of minehunters’ hull sonar. It is able to produce far more precise images than the previous generation of sonar imaging technology: its multi-aspect photography capability enables it to observe an object on the seabed from three different viewing angles. SAMDIS’s multi aspect functionality is currently the only technology that can classify sonar echoes in a single sweep. The operational benefit is considerable, particularly when the aim is also to define the type of payload needed to destroy it, if it is a mine. These synthetic aperture sonar systems, which deliver high-resolution images of the seabed, will greatly enhance mine countermeasure capabilities. By maximising their detection capacity and minimising the number of false alarms, one of the major challenges of drone-based mine warfare systems, navies will be able to engage teams of mine clearance divers only when appropriate and avoid risking their lives unnecessarily.

MMCM, a system of systems boasting a level of performance equivalent to that of a minehunter, means there is no role for the conventional mine clearance vessel, such as those in the French navy’s Eridan class. However, a move to drone warfare will not spell the end of this type of vessel, whatever the fleet concerned.

Pathmaster: a host of export growth drivers

Most military navies will not immediately attain the technological levels pursued by the French, British, Dutch and Belgian fleets, which have no rivals in the mine warfare segment. Yes, navies will move from their current conventional minehunter-based MOs toward an automated mode, encompassing drones, AUV and ultimately AUSS(2).
But the revolution in mine warfare will be a slow one. And the use of conventional minehunters to destroy explosive devices looks set to be standard practice a while yet.

First and foremost because contemporary minehunters have achieved a form of perfection in terms of their protection technology. Discreet, non-magnetic and having a very weak acoustic signature, they are still the ideal instruments for the missions they are assigned to perform. However, two factors call for new technological solutions:

• the desire to protect the lives of these particularly exposed vessels’ crews, and
• the evolving threat, which is becoming stealthier and stealthier and against which conventional systems have proved ineffective.

In addition, some fleets have invested heavily and recently in acquiring such vessels and do not intend to end their operational lives prematurely when these platforms are built to last: the Eridan, the leader of its eponymous class, entered service 35 years ago and remains an effective tool thanks to regular modernisation phases.

A modular drone-based system

However, it is possible to conceive of a modular drone-based system using Pathmaster technologies and designed to meet the needs of export clients. A hybrid mine countermeasures system, based on minehunters equipped with drone systems, would allow navies already equipped with dedicated platforms not only to improve their operating profits but also to make substantial savings as they seek to boost their vessels’ operational potential. They might also, in so doing, prepare for the gradual deployment of an anti-mine solution consisting entirely of remotely piloted automated vehicles. The adoption of Pathmaster technologies would also give the clients concerned access to a level of minehunter hitherto reserved for the most modern navies having the resources to train experts: Pathmaster operators can be trained in a matter or months, or even weeks.

As the global leader in this segment, Thales can draw on its experience and reputation with numerous client navies to offer innovative solutions.

The group offers innovative new solutions including hull sonar (TSM 2022 MkIII), variable-depth sonar (sonar 2093), towed sonar (T-SAS(3)) and specific combat systems (M-Cube, etc.). It can equip a frigate-type warship not specifically designed for mine warfare in order to enable it to reconnoitre a safe route through mined waters or call on a minehunter to clear any obstacles. It can also offer to deploy mine countermeasures from land on behalf of its clients. In this context, it can implement systems operating from naval bases and/or designated zones. A USV (Unmaned Surface Vehicle) can operate from a port in tandem with other systems (AUV, AUSS, etc.).

Lastly, Thales offers clients the opportunity to invest in training for their mine warfare specialists, thereby rapidly growing these clients’ capabilities. In its Users Club, the group regularly brings together representatives of the navies that use its systems. At these seminars, members of “smaller” navies can talk to specialists from leading navies or Thales representatives and very quickly identify solutions to their challenges.

Constantly innovating, Thales boasts a comprehensive and complementary catalogue of mine countermeasures, ranging from the most innovative solutions (Pathmaster) to systems enabling navies using more traditional methods to upgrade their resources. Proud of the trust placed in it by the British and French authorities, the group develops and adapts its highest performance solutions to its clients’ operational needs. This is what makes Thales a major player in security at sea, for civil and military stakeholders alike.

Philippe Migault

(1) The French group and BAE Systems are the programme’s joint prime contractors

(2) Autonomous Underwater and Surface System

(3) Towed Synthetic Aperture Sonar

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