Click here - to select or create a menu

Naval News

SHIELD AFRICA 2021
  • News
  • Event News
    • Euronaval 2020
    • SNA 2020
    • MADEX 2019
    • PACIFIC 2019
  • Interviews
  • Videos
  • Advertising
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
Home» News»BAE Systems Completes P950 RIB USV Trials with MSI RWS
BAE Systems Completes P950 RIB USV Trials with MSI RWS 1
BAE Systems' The vessel can operate for up to 10 days at ‘patrol speed’ or 300 nautical miles in pursuit mode, reaching speeds of up to 45 knot.

BAE Systems Completes P950 RIB USV Trials with MSI RWS

BAE Systems has successfully completed a series of trials with the Pacific 950 unmanned surface vehicle (USV) fitted with MSI Defence's new lightweight remote weapon station (RWS).

Xavier Vavasseur 27 Jul 2019

The autonomous Pacific 950 Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) demonstrator has been used to develop and prove innovative technologies which have the potential to make naval missions faster, easier and safer, taking the relationship between human and machine to new territories.

Developed alongside industry experts from L3Harris and MSI Defence Systems, the P950 is equipped with automated navigational decision-making technologies, freeing up operators to focus on mission critical information from afar. To enhance the capability of existing warships, the technology has been designed to be retrofitted to existing RIBs, such as BAE Systems’ Pacific 24, which is currently in service with the Royal Navy across its surface fleet.

The vessel can operate for up to 10 days at ‘patrol speed’ or 300 nautical miles in pursuit mode, reaching speeds of up to 45 knots, whilst either being remote controlled or on a semi-autonomous mission. Trials conducted by BAE Systems have shown how the technology provides a unique ability to undertake complex, multi-phase missions and support advanced dynamic tasking, whilst providing enhanced situational awareness to support faster and more effective decision-making by naval operators.

It has potential applications across a range of missions, including anti-piracy operations, border control, persistent intelligence gathering, maritime security and force protection. The use of autonomous vessels in high-risk areas would allow operations to be conducted without endangering sailors or Marines.

The MSI-DS SEAHAWK MWS was selected in 2018 to be the 12.7mm Remote Weapon Station of choice to equip the BAE Systems P950 USV demonstrator. Picture by Richard Scott/NAVYPIX

The boat has pre-programmed intelligent behaviours to position itself appropriately in relation to a potential threat. Its weapons system, developed by MSI Defence Systems with BAE Systems, remains firmly under a human operator’s control, ensuring that whilst the vessel can operate and navigate autonomously, there will always be a highly-trained operator in the loop, making the final decision on engagement and targeting.

The MSI-DS SEAHAWK MWS was selected in 2018 to be the 12.7mm Remote Weapon Station of choice to equip the BAE Systems P950 USV demonstrator. Successful integration trials were completed in late 2018 with follow-on performance firing trials for the MSI-DS SEAHAWK MWS completed in February 2019. The results of trials demonstrated “best in class” levels of accuracy and dispersion, in keeping with reputation of the MSI-DS SEAHAWK family of gun systems.

The MSI-DS SEAHAWK Multi Weapon Station (MWS) A1 is specifically designed to be the most compact, lightweight, remote controlled naval gun system available. It features a universal soft mount system which can be fitted with 7.62mm or 12.7mm machine guns from a variety of manufacturers. An alternative option is to fit a 40mm grenade launcher in the same soft mount system.

BAE Systems MSI Defence RHIB Unmanned Surface Vessel USV 2019-07-27
Tags BAE Systems MSI Defence RHIB Unmanned Surface Vessel USV
Facebook Twitter Stumble linkedin Pinterest More

Authors

Posted by : Xavier Vavasseur
Xavier is based in Paris, France. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems and a Master of Business Administration from Florida Institute of Technology (FIT). Xavier has been covering naval defense topics for nearly a decade.

Related Articles

Leidos completes delivery of Seahawk Vessel to US Navy

Leidos completes delivery of Seahawk Vessel to US Navy

Naval News Staff 08 Apr 2021
Leidos announced today that it has completed delivery of a cutting-edge autonomous vessel to the U.S. Navy, known as Seahawk.
New Feature Improves Autonomy and Safety of Elbit Systems’ Seagull USV

New Feature Improves Autonomy and Safety of Elbit Systems’ Seagull USV

Naval News Staff 22 Mar 2021
Elbit Systems introduces new technologies on-board the Seagull Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) further enhancing its capability to operate autonomously in a busy maritime environment and to overcome communication challenges.
BAE Systems contracted for Nulka Decoy Launching System continued development and support

BAE Systems contracted for Nulka Decoy Launching System continued development and support

Naval News Staff 19 Mar 2021
BAE Systems Australia has signed an AU$150 million (US$117 million) contract for the continued development, procurement and sustainment of the Nulka system, which will strengthen Australia’s sovereign technical expertise and the skills base that supports it.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Legal / Privacy Policy
About Us
Contact Us

Copyright © 2021 Naval News
All Rights Reserved