The Royal Navy said that five uncrewed boats, controlled from a location 500 miles away, took part in trials to assess the operational use of autonomous vessel technology.
The demonstration, which lasted 72 hours off the coast of Scotland, involved the Rattler boats working with HMS Tyne in a scenario designed to replicate the escort of a warship.
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During the exercise, personnel based at HMNB Portsmouth remotely piloted the 7.2-metre vessels while they operated near Scottish waters.
The team, situated aboard Experimental Vessel (XV) Patrick Blackett in Portsmouth, included members of the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, and Army.
The trials are part of an ongoing programme led by the Royal Navy’s Disruptive Capabilities and Technology Office (DCTO) and Fleet Experimentation Squadron (FXS).
Over recent months, seven autonomous Rattler boats have undergone a series of tests aimed at pushing their capabilities and those of their operators.
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By GlobalDataIn the latest phase, five of these boats were piloted remotely as they worked alongside HMS Biter of the Coastal Forces Squadron, a Merlin helicopter, HMS Tyne, and HMS Stirling Castle in a proof-of-concept exercise.
Both Tyne and Stirling Castle acted as foreign warships for the purpose of testing coordinated escort operations.
Each Rattler is based on a rigid inflatable boat platform fitted with autonomy systems, sensors, and modular equipment.
The vessels are capable of operating independently or in groups and can follow pre-set missions or navigational routes.
Camera feeds, sensor data, and other information are transmitted back to controllers, who run operations from portable laptop systems.
A two-person team manages each boat. One of them pilots remotely while the other handles onboard systems and supervises live data.
This setup enables full remote control and management of the drones’ functions. According to project leaders, prior to heading for Scottish waters, the drones completed operational runs in busy areas such as the Solent and Portland from their home port in Portsmouth.
Development and testing involved close collaboration between military personnel and industry partners from a consortium of small and medium-sized enterprises.
The Royal Navy adopted an accelerated approach to procurement for this project, taking custom-built uncrewed surface vessels from concept through delivery in just a matter of weeks.
Operators provided feedback throughout research and development stages to ensure that the vessels met operational demands.
Commander Michael Hutchinson, commanding officer of the FXS and XV Patrick Blackett said: “This is a really important moment for the Royal Navy as we progress towards a Hybrid Navy of crewed and uncrewed platforms. We have been using autonomous systems for some time, but not like this.
“These USVs have been built and developed at pace, in a ground-breaking way, alongside a coalition of fantastic local companies this has been the most exciting project of my career.
“These platforms will be used alongside and in support of existing and future warships and as a capability in their own right. It is a technology that will continue to develop and it will fundamentally change the way we fight.”
Recently, Royal Navy’s HMS Somerset (F82), a Type-23 frigate, conducted the first British test firing of a Naval Strike Missile (NSM) off the coast of Andøya, Norway.
