Belgian Navy's new minehunting mother ship tests drone systems
An Inspector 125 USV being trialled on the LARS of Oostende during its sea acceptance tests. (Naval Group)
Oostende, the first new mine-countermeasures vessel (MCMV) destined for the Belgian Navy under the Belgian/Netherlands replacement MCM programme, returned to Naval Group's facility in Lorient on 25 April after successfully completing the initial trials of its launch and recovery system (LARS) and Mine Hunter 02 (MHU 02) – the first Inspector 125 unmanned surface vehicle (USV) produced by Exail for the programme, a Naval Group official has told Janes .
The first set of tests, which started on 11 April alongside in Lorient, covered the integration of the floating dock ‘cradle' on the ship's davit, the installation of the Inspector 125 USV on the cradle, familiarisation with both the winches that operate the dock and the securing system that locks the USV into the cradle, and the lowering and lifting of the dock with and without the Inspector 125 by day and night.
A few days later these operations were carried out with Oostende under way. These trials focused on the deployment and retrieval of the floating dock, the launching and recovering of the Inspector 125 at low speeds from 2 to 8 kt, and the assessment of the navigation, sea keeping, manoeuvrability, and propulsion of the USV.
With the LARS' capabilities and the USV's seaworthiness validated, the next trial session will involve testing the USV with payloads – such as A18-M autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), and the SeaScan, Remus, and K-Ster remotely operated vehicles – in order to assess the whole range of equipment.
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