Key Points
- Northrop Grumman demonstrated integration of its AN/AQS-24 minehunting system with a Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vehicle for the U.S. Navy.
- The firm started open-water testing 45 days after contract award, and the Navy stated the system met all main authorities aims.
Northrop Grumman has accomplished a brand new demonstration of its mine countermeasures know-how, exhibiting that its AN/AQS-24 minehunting system will be built-in with an uncrewed floor platform to satisfy rising U.S. Navy operational necessities.
According to an organization assertion, Northrop Grumman Corporation efficiently demonstrated the combination of its AN/AQS-24 minehunting system with a Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vehicle, or MCM USV. The effort is aimed toward addressing the Navy’s requirement for an uncrewed, towed mine countermeasures functionality that may cut back threat to sailors whereas sustaining operational effectiveness.
Company says the demonstration moved from contract award to open-water testing in simply 45 days. Following the signing of a contract with the U.S. Navy, Northrop Grumman started trials in Panama City, Florida, the place the system was examined in an operational maritime atmosphere. The aim was to point out that the helicopter-towed AN/AQS-24, which is already in service, might be tailored to function successfully when deployed from an unmanned floor vessel.
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The AN/AQS-24 is a towed minehunting sonar designed to detect, classify, and localize sea mines in deep and shallow water. It has been used for years by U.S. Navy helicopters to help mine countermeasures operations. By pairing the system with an uncrewed floor vessel, the Navy goals to increase its use with out inserting aircrews or ship crews in proximity to explosive hazards.
As famous by the corporate, the combination with an MCM USV demonstrates the flexibleness of the AN/AQS-24 structure and its capacity to help evolving ideas of operation. The uncrewed floor automobile tows the sonar whereas working at standoff distances, permitting mine detection missions to be carried out with out exposing sailors to direct threat.
Mine warfare stays a persistent problem for naval forces, notably in chokepoints and contested coastal areas. Naval mines are comparatively cheap to deploy however can disrupt industrial delivery and navy operations, making efficient mine countermeasures a precedence for the U.S. Navy.
The Navy has been pursuing a broader shift towards uncrewed methods as a part of its mine countermeasures technique, changing legacy platforms with modular, unmanned options that may be deployed extra quickly and sustained for longer durations. The profitable demonstration means that current, fielded sensors just like the AN/AQS-24 will be tailored to help that transition with out ready for totally new methods to be developed.
Northrop Grumman stated the check additionally confirmed the velocity at which confirmed applied sciences will be repurposed to satisfy pressing operational wants. By leveraging an already-deployed minehunting system and integrating it with an unmanned floor vessel, the corporate and the Navy had been capable of validate a brand new functionality on a compressed timeline.
