Skip to main content

Future of Mine Countermeasures: French Navy Receives First SLAM-F Drone.


According to information published by the French MoD on January 21, 2025, the French Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) reached a major milestone in enhancing the French Navy's mine warfare capabilities by delivering its first surface drone designed for this mission. This delivery is part of the SLAM-F program (Future Naval Mine Countermeasure System).
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link

The French Navy's new unmanned mine warfare system SLAM-F. (Picture source: French MoD)


The delivered system includes an innovative surface drone equipped with a high-resolution SAMDIS towed sonar and a deployable operations center based in Brest, Brittany. Measuring 12 meters in length, 4 meters in width, and with a displacement of up to 20.8 tons, the drone can perform missions lasting up to 40 hours at an operational speed of 8 knots and a maximum speed of 21 knots.

The SAMDIS sonar, which currently provides a detection range of 100 meters (to be extended to 200 meters by the end of 2025), enables accurate detection and classification of underwater threats. Its compact, air-transportable design replaces the larger ships traditionally used for such operations, while reducing risks to human crews by operating in remotely controlled and unmanned modes.

The development of this drone falls under the framework of the Franco-British Maritime Mine Counter Measures (MMCM) cooperation program, led by Thales Underwater Systems and managed by OCCAr (Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation).

The delivery of this first drone marks an initial step toward achieving full operational capability, anticipated by the end of 2025. Eventually, this drone will be joined by five additional units, creating an autonomous fleet capable of efficiently covering high-risk areas.

In preparation for this transition, training programs began in the summer of 2024, enabling French Navy personnel to familiarize themselves with the system immediately upon delivery. Additionally, the drone successfully completed its sea trials on January 16, 2025.

Comments

Unmanned systems are increasingly central to mine warfare strategies worldwide, with several nations developing and deploying advanced technologies to enhance maritime security and operational efficiency.

The Belgian and Royal Netherlands Navies have initiated the replacement Mine Countermeasures (rMCM) program, a transformative step in naval mine warfare capabilities. Launched in 2019, the Belgium Naval & Robotics consortium—comprising Naval Group and Exail—was tasked with delivering 12 Mine Countermeasure (MCM) vessels and approximately 100 drones.

In the context of ongoing conflict, Ukraine has pioneered the use of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) for mine-related operations. The Khartiia Brigade successfully employed a remote-controlled UGV equipped with a machine gun in an assault against Russian forces in the Kharkiv region.

German defense manufacturer Rheinmetall and Croatian robotics specialist DOK-ING have announced a joint venture to develop unmanned military vehicles. The collaboration aims to produce vehicles capable of tasks such as mine clearance, air defense, and reconnaissance. The first prototype, expected in 2025, will be an unmanned mine-scattering vehicle based on DOK-ING's Komodo platform, capable of laying mines and mapping their positions at speeds up to 60 kilometers per hour.


Copyright © 2019 - 2024 Army Recognition | Webdesign by Zzam