Feature: Minesweeping comes back to the future

The lightweight powerpack associated with HEMLIS is visible on the aft deck of the FFI-operated RIB. (H. Henriksen)

In late April 2026 the Norwegian marine technology and handling systems group H. Henriksen AS, in partnership with the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) and Patria, hosted the inaugural Minesweep Gathering event. Held in the small Norwegian coastal town of Horten, the seminar drew over 70 industry, scientific, and military professionals to discuss challenges in the area, according to company project director Alexander Sørensen.

“I think there is a growing reawakening in minesweeping,” he told Janes. “For several decades, many saw mine hunting as the answer. But today there is a recognition that sweeping is a core part of the mine countermeasures [MCM] toolbox, and an understanding that hunting and sweeping are not mutually exclusive. This was very much the message we got from participants in Minesweep Gathering 2026.

“We invited partners, customers, and suppliers of alternative minesweeping solutions, and asked them to put their badges to one side,” Sørensen added. “The feedback we got was very encouraging.”

That Minesweep Gathering 2026 sparked such enthusiasm reflects rekindled interest in minesweeping operations and technology. MCM practitioners have, over the past half century, overwhelmingly focused on mine hunting as the preferred means to detect, identify, and neutralise sea mines. For most of that period, mine hunting relied on specialist low-signature vessels equipped with forward-looking sonar to detect, classify and localise mine threats: positional information would then be used to cue an inspection vehicle and/or neutraliser. Advances in sonar and unmanned vehicles fostered confidence that the vast majority of mine threats could be located, and then either avoided or destroyed.