The Royal Navy has announced that a submersible remote-controlled mine disposal system, previously tested and used in Ukraine, is now “ready” for operational deployment in the Strait of Hormuz.
Dubbed, Video Ray Defender-Viper, the portable device is designed to locate, identify, and neutralise dangerous underwater devices.
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According to the Royal Navy, the system has already been tested extensively in European waters and is currently in use by Ukrainian forces for disposing of mines.
The system is considered especially effective against buoyant mines that float just below the ocean’s surface and detonate when struck by passing vessels.
In recent weeks, specialists from the Diving Threat and Exploitation Group of Royal Navy have completed intensive training on the system.
The technology is now aboard the Bay-class landing ship RFA Lyme Bay, which left Gibraltar this week.
The ship has been equipped with an array of minehunting and autonomous systems, including two Defender-Viper units, as it positions itself to serve as a mine warfare mothership during a potential multinational mission in the Strait of Hormuz.
Delta Squadron commanding officer lieutenant commander James Carpenter said: “A fundamental principle of Explosive Ordnance Disposal is to use remote means whenever possible, so if we have this tech, we need to use it.”
The Defender‑Viper system consists of a remotely operated vehicle called Defender, controlled from a laptop aboard a Royal Navy craft or from a makeshift command post on a ship.
The Viper component then attaches a demolition charge to an identified mine, while a Tornado firing system enables detonation from a safe distance.
Once the Defender is manoeuvred into position, it secures the Viper to the mine and withdraws, leaving the device fixed in place.
As it retreats, the submersible trails a firing cable to a stand-off range, where the operator initiates the controlled detonation.
The charge is intended to penetrate steel of more than one metre thickness, destroying the mine effectively.
Able Seaman (Diver) Charlie Rich, who has trained on the new system said: “There are occasions when it is so dark, visibility is so bad that you’re literally hoping to bump into something. With this, the sonar is fantastic, so we can ‘see’ through the darkness and murkiness.
“The system has the potential to be phenomenal – and we still possess our fundamental skills to fall back upon if it doesn’t work for some reason and get in the water.”
Further training is planned before a team of divers joins RFA Lyme Bay, the Royal Navy stated.
