OCCAR places a contract for the delivery of 9 Mine Warfare Primary Systems

OCCAR-EA signed a contract for the production of nine Maritime Mine Counter Measures (MMCM) primary systems with Thales Defense Mission Systems (TDMS) in November 2020. Three of these nine primary systems will be delivered to the United Kingdom (UK), four primary systems (plus two additional as options, to be exercised in 2021) to France.

MMCM system baseline includes a portable command and control centre, an unmanned surface vessel (USV) and can operate unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV). Each USV can deploy automatically a towed sonar and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). USVs and UUVs will detect, classify and localise all types of naval mines. ROVs will identify the mines. Moreover, each ROV is fitted with three reloadable munitions to defeat the mines.

The aforementioned contract also includes the upgrade of the two prototypes purchased by OCCAR in 2015 on behalf of FR and the UK, the delivery of a first batch of munitions, plus the delivery of a shore operating center and a training center to FR.

MMCM is a cooperation launched in 2010 as part of the Lancaster House Treaty between FR and the UK. The MMCM systems developed under this cooperation operate faster and more efficiently than the current legacy mine hunters, and most importantly, they keep the navy personnel out of the minefield.

The industrial organisation, led by Thales Defense Mission Systems (FR), includes Thales UK, ASV (UK), ECA (FR), and SAAB (Sweden).