FT: Defence firms prepare uncrewed systems for Strait of Hormuz mine clearance

Defence companies and marine contractors are preparing to deploy uncrewed mine-clearing systems in and around the Strait of Hormuz, as efforts to reopen the vital shipping lane accelerate and draw attention to a new generation of naval drones, the Financial Times reports.

The UK this week pledged to send autonomous minehunting vessels built by Canada’s Kraken Robotics as part of a multinational initiative aimed at reopening the strait “when conditions allow”.

US military officials say Iran has laid only a limited number of mines in the waterway. However, naval veterans argue that uncertainty alone is sufficient to disrupt commercial shipping.

Unlike Second World War-era mines, which typically floated near the surface and detonated on contact, modern mines are usually placed on the seabed and triggered by sensors detecting vessels overhead.

To locate and neutralise them, navies are increasingly relying on uncrewed systems, including surface vessels fitted with sonar arrays and submersible drones.

According to the outlet, mine-disposal drones such as SeaFox, made by Germany’s Atlas Elektronik, could also contribute to the process.

Industry executives say the objective is not to eliminate every mine, but to clear a safe enough corridor for commercial traffic to resume.

“Twenty years ago you would send a UK minehunter with 50 people on it at huge expense,” said Simon Tucker, chief executive of UK maritime surveillance specialist SRT Marine, which is in talks with several Gulf countries on using its technology for mine detection.

He said discussions are focused on sweeping routes ahead of convoys to build confidence that “there aren’t that many” mines in the waterway.

SRT is already supplying maritime surveillance systems, including uncrewed surface vessels provided by Ocean Infinity, to monitor and patrol Kuwaiti waters, and is in discussions with other Gulf governments.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov