10th Naval Platform Technology Seminar 2005

A WHOLE NEW APPROACH IN MINE WARFARE

Philippe Goubault
Senior Naval Arhitect
DCN Ingénierie
DCN
France
philippe.goubault@dcn.fr

Philippe Waquet
Mine Warfare Expert
DCN
France
philippe.waquet@dcn.fr

SYNOPSIS

Mine warfare is on the verge of a revolution. This key element in securing the safety of our national
coastal waters as well as that of our ships sent abroad in support of international coalitions is being
reconsidered with the advent of Remote and Unmanned vehicles which are now capable of conducting
the greatest part of mine warfare operations at a safe distance from the mine for the human operators
and for support ships involved.

This new capability offers an opportunity for ship designers to revisit the concept of Mine Warfare
Vessels. Instead of imposing upon the ship stringent requirements for low acoustic and
electromagnetic signatures as well as high resistance to UNDEX, it becomes possible to design a ship
with much lower standards in this regard, and thus much less expensive. On the other hand the remote
mine hunting vessel has to be particularly designed for the handling of the unmanned vehicles which
now constitute its main weapons.

The design presented in this paper illustrates such a concept. The new MCM vessel considered by
DCN utilizes the full capability of unmanned vehicles to carry out the main missions including
survey, classification, identification and neutralization of mines. Besides, the DCN design integrates
all these systems with emphasis on the handling of such systems and on operational availability.

1. INTRODUCTION

Mine Warfare is a key element in securing the safety of our national coastal waters as well as
that of our ships sent abroad in support of international coalitions.

In the past decade or so, the focus has shifted from international (blue) waters to littoral
(brown) waters. Up until the late eighties, the main threat on the balance of peace was most
influenced by the long cold war era. During that era, supremacy on the open sea was seen as
the main objective for our western nations. Now that this threat of global war has subsided,
the main concerns are on regional conflicts which require a greater presence in coastal
waters. In addition, the need for increased safety of our own national waters has also directed
much effort towards this same littoral area.

The control of the shallow, littoral waters now implies a better hand on the mine risk. Mines
are essentially located within the littoral waters as they must be anchored or even hidden on
the bottom. Mine warfare used to be a concern mostly in the key points of entry for our
fleets. Now its is a problem that must be addressed as part of the intervention forces
deployed overseas in the areas of conflict as well as generalized to the entire coastline of our
own countries.

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At the same time as the need for mine warfare has evolved quite drastically, the means for
conducting anti-mine operations are also changing in a very significant way. The era of
remote mine warfare is now very near. This evolution will have a lasting effect on the nature
of mine warfare systems and further more architecture of mine countermeasure vessels (or
MCMV). This paper discusses the design of a new generation of mine warfare vessels, called
NGMD (meaning “Navire de Guerre des Mines Déportée” which stands for “Remote Mine
Warfare Vessel”), designed around the new capabilities offered by remote control and
unmanned vehicles, as illustrated by Figure 1 below.

Figure 1: the future of Mine warfare lies with remote control vehicles

In addition to the advantages of limiting human exposure to the mine, the capability of
remote vehicles for mine warfare may be enhanced by the simultaneous use of Unmanned
Aerial Vehicles (UAV) in order to keep track of the remote vehicles used in mine warfare
and relay the radio signals. UAVs may be a cost effective way of achieving such capability
as compared to helicopters, and contribute also to the goal of keeping men out of risky areas.

2. THE “SEAKEEPER” CONCEPT

The first mission required from mine countermeasure vessels is to be able to detect the
presence and location of possible mines. This part of the mission is termed mine detection
and classification. It is usually carried out by hull mounted sonar installed in the ship or
variable depth sonar carried by a dedicated fish. In both cases the ship has to be sufficiently
quiet, anti-magnetic and hardened to carry out this part of the mission safely. As a matter of
fact, the ship is likely to pass over or near the mine before it can detect its presence.

The first objective for the new generation of mine warfare vessels is to deploy the same type
of sonar directly from an unmanned vehicle. Several attempts have been made to accomplish
such a goal. The “SeaKeeper” concept was born from these attempts. The key performance
objectives for the “SeaKeeper” were:

• To operate remotely without physical link

• To carry a side scan sonar, the main instrument for detection

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• To operate at good speed in order to be able to survey large areas quickly and be able
to operate even in strong currents
• To operate in heavy seas without performance degradation

The “SeaKeeper”, illustrated by figure 2 below is thus based upon the following principles:

• A fully radio controlled vehicle, capable of operating up to 15 km from the control

source
• A semi-submersible hull, able to operate in rough weather without being subject to
large motions, in spite of its relatively small size
• A state-of-the-art sonar deployed at a controlled depth directly from the vehicle
• A relatively simple and rugged vehicle powered by a commercial diesel engine

Figure 2: The SeaKeeper Vehicle

With an effective speed of 10-12 knots, the SeaKeeper is able to survey a large area at a
quicker pace than most dedicated mine counter-measure vessels. It is estimated that a single
SeaKeeper can have twice the productivity of a classical MCM vessel. Two SeaKeeper
vehicles deployed from a support ship can be as effective in this role as a fleet of MCMV.

Initial assessment of an unknown area can quickly be conducted by the SeaKeeper while its
support ship stays back and operates only in the cleared waters, as illustrated in figure 3
below.

Sonar reconnaissancetask

Safety distance UNCLEAR AREA

Semi
(300 to 540m)
submersible
MCMV drone

Radio control range up to 15 000 m

Figure 3: Typical clearing of an unknown area by a UUV such as the SeaKeeper

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3. MINE IDENTIFICATION AND NEUTRALIZATION

Once the area has been safely surveyed by the SeaKeeper, the support ship being at a safe
distance, the location of suspect objects is marked. If a safe passage can be found among
such objects, the mission may be accomplished. However, in most instances, a clear
identification of the suspect objects will be required and in case these are identified as mines,
they will have to be neutralized for the safety of all maritime operations (in a first instance
operations of an intervention forces, afterwards of all commercial maritime traffic).

New developments for two types of remote vehicles are seen as complementary of the
SeaKeeper as part of a full Mine Counter-Measure system:

• Mine Disposal Vehicles (MDV) which enable the remote investigation by sensors,
including sonar and camera of the suspect objects, and eventually capable of
destroying the mines by laying an explosive charge next to it.
• Expandable Mine Disposal Weapons (EMDW) which are designed to identify the
mine by cameras before destroying it by direct contact with it, using explosive they
carry on-board. These are therefore sacrificial and can only be used once but their
unit cost is expected to be sufficiently attractive to justify their use instead of a
classical charge dispatched by an MDV

The first generation of such vehicles is operated via umbilical cords as illustrated in figure 4
below. This technology has evolved to the point of allowing several kilometers of umbilical
to be deployed. This enables operating these vehicles beyond 1000 meters from the support
ship. It is thus possible to deploy them from a support ship that is not especially hardened
against mines, nor particularly designed to the low signature standards of classical MCM
vessels. This is possible of course providing that an initial detection has been carried out, for
instance by the Seakeeper.

Figure 4: Examples of MDV and EMDW remote mine-hunting vehicles in action

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It is currently a rather delicate operation to launch, deploy and retrieve the umbilical driven
vehicles as their cord must not be entangled at any time. It is for example virtually
impossible to launch two vehicles of this type simultaneously, and it takes special measures,
such as deploying a special boom, to ensure that the cord will not get into the propulsion or
any appendage of the ship. However, it is anticipated that fully autonomous generations of
such vehicles will be available in a relatively near future. This will enable the support ship to
stay further out of the dangerous area and will improve the agility of theses vehicles.

4. THE NGMD SUPPORT SHIP REQUIREMENTS

The ship itself designed around these systems is driven by a new set of requirements,
adapted to the deployment of unmanned vehicles and to the new types of deployment in
remote regions. It is to be noted that the NGMD concept was developed as part of a general
concept of increased security. The NGMD requirements and the design proposed hereafter
were common to a new ship type intended for a more general purpose mission (that of
National Security), described in reference [1].

UUV launch system: Above all, a dedicated UUV launch system and storage area are needed
to ensure a safe deployment of the vehicles, this even in heavy seas where the system must
remain fully operational. This will thus be central to the architecture of the vessel.

Speed and Seakeeping: In order to sustain mine warfare operations during the deployment of
a naval task force, it appears also necessary to provide the support ship with sufficient speed
and endurance so as not to slow down the whole task force to line up with the capability of
the MCM force. Currently, most MCM vessels are small ships (less than 1000 t) and do not
exceed 15 knots top speed. This has proven a limiting factor in deploying forces in
dangerous regions. Given the risk to major ships (carriers, landing ships, destroyers, …), the
mine risk must be cleared before any positioning of such forces in the coastal zone.
Therefore, a speed over 20 knots is required for the support ship.

Furthermore, the deployment speed should be sustained in rough weather conditions. The
largest ships composing the fleet will be able to keep the pace in heavy seas and should not
be further slowed down by the seakeeping limitations of the smaller MCM vessels
accompanying them. The support ship also must have superior seakeeping in order to
maintain the operability of its systems into heavy weather.

Technical spaces: The ship being now a support ship for several independent unmanned
vehicles, it is essential to provide it with a great deal of technical spaces for the preparation,
storage and maintenance of these new assets. In addition, the Center of Operation must be
designed to integrate the navigational data of the ship and the vehicles deployed in order to
keep good control of their respective locations, especially with regard to the risk of mines or
suspect objects lying on the seabed.

Helicopter capability: A helicopter landing platform could be also a great advantage for this
ship as this could prove a good instrument in controlling and protecting the Unmanned
Vehicles, as well as enable logistic support from the rest of the fleet. At the very least, a
VERTREP capability is required for this last requirement.

It is envisioned that the helicopter platform could be used occasionally for storage of
additional equipment such as the deployment of a mine-sweeping system towed from a
SeaKeeper. Such equipment may be required when the seabed is muddy and could hide
mines from classical sonar search.

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In addition helicopter can also be used in mine warfare operations and thus the helicopter
platform will enable the ship to cooperate fully with such helicopters.

It is also noted that a UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) may be used on the NGMD to track
the SeaKeeper and even to relay the radio control signals. This may serve to limit the risk for
the ship itself or even a manned helicopter of operating within the coastal waters without
adequate protection. The helicopter deck can thus be used to operate a UAV.

Diver support: Divers are used extensively in Mine Warfare. The concept of NGMD aims at
reducing the need for exposing personnel to the danger of mines. Thus most operations from
identification to neutralization are expected to be carried out by remotely operated vehicles.

However some navies consider the need for maintaining a capability for neutralizing the
mine without destroying it, especially when they find a new type of mine. This enables them
to recover and study the mine and add new data to their database.

Thus a capability for hosting a team of specialized divers and a decompression tank are also
required for the NGMD. This capability may not be permanent. Divers may for instance be
called upon from another ship in the fleet or even from a land based center when a special
intervention is required. The ship is fitted with a diver preparation room and can host the
divers as part of its passenger capacity. The decompression tank may be fitted on its deck
and connected to the ship network.

5. MAIN ARCHITECTURE CHOICES FOR THE NGMD SHIP:

From the requirements above, the main architecture choices have been made to propose a
comprehensive response for the MCM vessel of the (near) future.

Signatures and Shock hardening: The most significant orientation was to design a ship
without specific requirements for either low signatures nor for shock resistance. These two
pre-requisites usually found in old fashion MCMV are no longer needed as the ship will
operate at a safe distance from the mine field.

From the initial phase of surveying the uncleared area by a UUV like the SeaKeeper, to the
actual disposal of identified mines, the ship is not expected to come closer than 500-1000
meters from the mine. At such distances, the mine should not be triggered even if the
acoustic and magnetic signatures have not been especially reduced below a normal level. In
addition, even if a mine was to explode at that distance, the shock factor required to survive
is in the order of 0.1 to 0.2 which can be achieved by most commercial equipment and
structural design practices.

The NGMD ship is still expected to have good performance, particularly from the acoustic
viewpoint but not to the level usually required from MCMVs. Good design practice
including shock mounting of vital equipment and few carefully selected structural design
reinforcements are to be included in the NGMD design, while keeping the cost impact well
below the level of classical MVMV designs.

Hullform: The requirement for good seakeeping, while the ship is expected to be rather small
in comparison with the larger vessels composing the task force, led to the selection of a
SWATH hullform (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull). The NGMD Ship is thus based upon
the SWATH concept, which will provide it with the superior seakeeping ability which was
identified earlier.

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In particular, this hullform is expected to enable the NGMD ship to keep its speed in rough
weather while maintaining a good level of comfort. The crew will thus arrive in the region of
the conflict in good physical shape and be more efficient for its mission.

What is a SWATH ?
A SWATH, or Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull, is a catamaran with semi-submerged hulls
connected to the main platform through thin struts (reference [2]). The thin waterplane
reduces the action of waves on the hull motions and enables the SWATH to operate in rough
seas without severe motions. The optimisation of a SWATH hullform requires careful design of
its principal dimensions and shape so as to keep its natural periods away from the most likely
encountered wave period. Figure 5 illustrates the hullform designed for this project..

Figure5: The NGMD SWATH hullform

Why a SWATH?

The primary reason for selecting a SWATH hullform lies in its exceptional seakeeping
capability. As a matter of fact, this 2000 t ship will have the behaviour of a 5-6000 t monohull!

However, another feature of SWATH hullforms is the large deck space they offer (and all
usable due to the low motions).

Electric Propulsion: an all-electric propulsion was retained for the NGMD. The flexibility of this type
of propulsion system is particularly attractive for a ship that will have to operate at low speeds during
the UUV’s launch and retrieval manoeuvres. In addition, this enables installing the prime movers in
the upper platform, where they will be more readily accessible for maintenance. The lower hulls, on
the other hand only host the electric motors and the various tanks and ballasts.

In addition the electric motors are installed in the after part of the lower hulls and can be packaged
together with the propulsor (a ducted propeller) and the steering gear (rotating duct around the
propeller). The packaging can be made independently of the ship construction site and assembled onto
the ship at the end of the ship building process, similarly to the installation of a POD.

Reduced Manning: The NGMD is designed to be operated by a crew of 15 only, dedicated to running
the ship, plus a mission team that will operate the specific Mine Warfare systems. The ship can host up
to 30 crew-members dedicated to the mission in addition to the basic ship crew. The concept proposed
is that of pooling both specific Mine Warfare equipment and crew between a fleet of NGMD ships.

This concept enables global reduction of the specialized systems and personnel without abandoning
the capability for the NGMD to carry them when required. The ship can operate on its basic crew as
long as it has not reached the theatre of operation and a “rendez-vous” can be arranged with the
specialized crew and their equipment just before the deployment in the area.

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This can be for instance the case of the divers, which may be based in a training center and called upon
for special operations requiring their capability. They come then (by helicopter) with their equipment
and a decompression tank and can become immediately fully operational on-board the NGMD. Their
capability can be shared by several NGMD vessels and thus the cost of supporting such a capability is
shared by the whole class rather than supported by a single ship.

Stern launch system: The NGMD is designed around a dedicated system for launching and retrieving
relatively large UUV or boats through the stern. This system was especially designed to enable quick
and safe manoeuvres in rough weather. The main principle utilized in this stern launch system consists
of decoupling the seizing of the vehicle from its lifting onboard the vessel.

This is achieved by setting the vehicle on a berth inside a specially designed floating nest where it can
be secured while afloat and extracting the whole (nest + vehicle) together with a gantry. The vehicle is
launched form the nest in the water and not from the ship deck, thus reducing considerably the relative
motions in the most delicate phase during the handling of the vehicle.

The system is illustrated by the sequence in figure 6 below, where the retrieval of a SeaKeeper vehicle
is shown.

Adaptability and modularity: The design of the NGMD includes many features intended to provide
this platform with a maximum degree of flexibility so as to be able to adapt to future missions and
systems.

The arrangement of standard container spots on the upper deck, with connections to the main utilities
of the ship, including in particular the numerical data network, are part of such capabilities offered by
the NGMD. This enables, for example, carrying a containerized combat system module, and
connecting it to the network so as to enable its full integration to the combat system. This provides the
NGMD with a “plug and play” capability with regard to future containerized systems.

In addition the main deck is 4 m high and contains a technical gallery running beneath the deck floors
in the two main alleyways. This ready access to all the ships networks will be a key asset for both
maintenance of the ship systems and for future upgrades to new requirements.

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¾ Le Sea Keeper est hâlé de manière à rentrer par l’arrière du panier.

¾ Un guide symétrique permet de guider la base de l’étai.

1- Deploying the nest 2- Vehicle entering the nest

¾ Le panier est arraché de l’eau au moment où il est sur le sommet d’une vague. ¾ La grue vient déposer le Sea Keeper sur un support de repos.
¾ Le Sea Keeper se cale alors sur les patins à rouleaux. ¾ Le personnel du bord contrôle à l’aide de garants les mouvements intempestifs du Sea Keeper
pendant les manoeuvres.

3- Lifting nest+vehicle out of the water 5- Transfer of the vehicle onto its berth

Figure 6: Stern handling of the UUV SeaKeeper

6. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED NGMD:

The Leading Particulars of the NGMD are shown in table 1 below:

Hullform SWATH
Overall Length 79 m
Overall Beam 19,5 m
Draft 5,2 m
Full Load Displacement 2100 t
Accommodations 15 ship crew + 30 mission crew
Installed Power 10 MW
Propulsion All Electric
Speed 21 knots
Range at 12 nds 5000 N

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The main components of the NGMD’s combat systems are summarized in table 2 below:

Combat System:
1 x helicopter landing deck
1 x stern area dedicated to MCM vehicles, equipped with
2 x remotely operated 20 mm guns
2 x 12,7 mm machine guns
One survey radar
2 navigation radars
Mine Counter-Measure systems
2 x SeaKeeper UUV
1 x MDV
20 x EMDW
10 x Navigational Buoys
Divers preparation room

The general configuration of the NGMD is illustrated by figure 7 below.

The NGMD was designed around the aviation deck and the stern deck area. The helicopter deck is
central to the upper platform, which can also host a number of standard containers for specific
equipment required for occasional missions.

Figure 7: General overview of the NGMD

The stern deck arrangement is illustrated by figure 8, where a SeaKeeper is shown at rest on its berth
while a RHIB is shown in place in the stern launch system. The stern deck is designed to host up to
two large vehicles (up to 9m long and 7 t). It is fitted with a crane for handling the vehicles in and out
of the launching nest.

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Figure 8: Stern deck arrangement of the NGMD

In addition, a maintenance hangar and additional storage space are fitted in front of the stern deck, just
underneath the helicopter deck. The diver preparation room, the storage of buoys and a side station for
launching smaller vehicles such the MDV and EMDW are arranged in this adjacent space.

7. CONCLUSION

The concept presented in this paper offers a radical departure form prior practices in Mine Warfare. It
is somewhat difficult for navies who come to think about upgrading their Mine Countermeasures
capabilities with such a new approach. Oftentimes, new building programs are designed as
replacement of existing vessels and the requirements are merely updated to account for new
developments in the field. However, the Mine Warfare using Unmanned Vehicles is such a novel
approach that it requires new thinking in elaborating the requirements.

It has been shown in this paper, through an example of a new Mine Warfare Vessel (the NGMD), that
the MCMV of the future could be made of steel, have only minimal measures for acoustic signature
reduction and no particular shock hardening. This may appear too “risky” to some and indeed requires
also a new operational approach where the Survey as well as all follow on actions (mine identification
and neutralization) are conducted from a distance by Unmanned Vehicles. However, the authors
believe that this will prove itself as the safest way ever to conduct mine warfare.

Great achievements have already been made with demonstrations at sea of the capabilities of vehicles
such as the SeaKeeper as well as other types of Unmanned Vehicles such as those described in this
paper. The final step will be to assemble a complete suite of such vehicles onto a single ship in order
to demonstrate that the MCM mission can be fully carried out by such means. The NGMD design is
aimed at doing precisely that.

8. REFERENCES

1. “Des propositions innovantes de DCN pour la Sauvegarde Maritime” by Philippe Goubault and
Arnaud Lacoin, Cols Bleu magazine, 24 december 2004
2. “SWATH Ships” by Colen Kennell, SNAME Technical and Research Bulletin n° 7-5 from 1992

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AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY

M. Goubault graduated from the ENSTA engineering school in 1983 with the Naval
Architecture specialty. His professional experience started with a first employment by
DCN in France, with the design of high speed Surface Effect Ships, including that of
prototype AGNES 200 in the late 1980’s
M. Goubault then spent most of the 1990’s in working for US firm Band-Lavis and
Associates in Maryland working on the development of parametric and point designs
of advanced naval vehicles for US government agencies as well as foreign navies and
commercial ship operators. He also developed early design and cost assessment
computer tools for the same US firm in that period.
After his return to France, he worked for 3 years as chief naval architect for the CMN
shipyard in Cherbourg, where he was involved in the design of high speed stealth
patrol craft and motor yachts.
M. Goubault worked several years working on European projects for an R&D firm, with significant
contributions to European projects such as FASTPOD (high speed podded propulsion ships), VRSHIP-ROPAX
2000 (integrated suite of design tools), and VIRTUE (the virtual towing tank)
M. Goubault returned to DCN in 2004 where he took charge of the design of advanced surface ships. As part of
his new responsibilities, he developed the design of a SWATH ship for Homeland Security missions, including
in particular Mine Countermeasures.

Philippe Waquet served in the French Navy from 1972 to 1992, mostly in the Mine
Warfare forces. Graduated from the French Naval Academy and from the Naval War
College, he holds a certificate of Clearance Diver and a degree in Mine Warfare.
Between 1977 and 1992, he participated to several MCM missions on the French
strategic theater and overseas, and took command of a Tripartite minehunter. During
4 years, he was successively in charge of the operational expertise on the French
Navy mine warfare equipment, including sonar, ROV, sweeps, tactical systems, and
mines, and then of the French Navy office for diving and underwater intervention
techniques. From 1990 to 1992, he represented France at the NATO Underwater
Diving Working Party.
In 1992, Philippe Waquet took an MBA at San Francisco State University
(California) and joined the industry as a marketing and sales manager at DCN, where he participated to several
export projects in more than 20 countries, including the sale of several minehunters.
Since 1996, he promotes new MCM concepts using unmanned systems and is deeply involved in the
development of the “SeaKeeper” remote Minehunting system.

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