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official online DSEI daily
RICHARD SCOTT
Sea Hunter powers ahead
The US Navy’s newly established surface development squadron is set to receive shortly the unmanned surface vessel (USV) Sea Hunter as it begins to ramp up test and trials activities for future autonomous and unmanned platforms. Developed by Leidos (Stand S4-120), the 40m trimaran-hull Sea Hunter was originally built to meet the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s AntiSubmarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel programme. The vessel has subsequently been transitioned to the Office of Naval Research (ONR) to serve as a more generic science and technology testbed. ONR has already used Sea Hunter for operational experimentation with a variety
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of mission payloads. Last year Sea Hunter became the first vessel to successfully autonomously navigate from San Diego to Pearl Harbour, Hawaii, and back without a single crew member on board, except very short-duration boardings by personnel from an escort vessel to check electrical and propulsion systems. Leidos is under contract for a second demonstrator, known as Sea Hunter II, which is currently being built at the USMI shipyard in Mississippi. Delivery is planned in 2020. The US Navy’s future fleet plan includes the acquisition of both Medium Unmanned Surface Vehicle (MUSV) and Large Unmanned Surface Vehicle (LUSV) classes. Leidos told DSEI Daily that it intends to pursue both requirements. Q
The UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (Stand N3-474) has taken delivery at DSEI of a brandnew 13m Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed from ASV, a subsidiary of L3Harris Technologies (Stands S7-310/ D28). Known as MAST 13, the autonomous surface craft will be used to support experimentation and demonstration of new technologies and techniques applicable to maritime autonomous systems. The vehicle’s launch was undertaken on 11 September alongside Victoria Dock, where MAST 13 is participating in unmanned surveillance and force protection demonstrations. Designed, built and commissioned by ASV at Portchester on the south coast of the UK, MAST 13 is an allaluminium, high-speed craft specifically designed to support research and experimentation. Powered by twin Cummins 550bhp diesel engines, driving Hamilton 292 waterjets, the vessel is capable of speeds up to 45kt. MAST 13 uses L3Harris’
Autonomo proprietary ASView autonomous control system, together with advanced algorithms developed by the company under Dstl funding. The programme forms part of tranche 2 of Dstl’s Advanced Autonomy project, which covers 26 different work packages intended to investigate new operational concepts and innovative technologies for the Royal Navy. ‘‘The development of MAST 13 reflects the increased use of unmanned systems in the military domain,’’ said Alasdair Gilchrist, Dstl’s above water systems programme manager. ‘‘In pushing the development of advanced maritime autonomy, this vehicle will act as a test platform to support new concepts for the
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11/09/2019 16:24
