Crewless Royal Navy boat put through its paces in the Solent
It's the first time the remotely controlled vessel has been tested in British waters
A crewless boat has been driven around in UK waters for the first time in the Solent - remotely controlled from a Royal Navy vessel.
The Pacific-24 rigid-inflatable craft was remotely and autonomously patrolled from the experimentation ship XV Patrick Blackett while the pair sailed off the coast of Portsmouth.
A week-long trial saw the vessel put through its paces in rough seas and in busy shipping lanes alongside ferries and fishing vessels in the harbour.
The autonomous tests saw it pre-programmed to follow certain manoeuvres and directions while the remotely-piloted tests saw it controlled by a Royal Marine using a console on board the ship.
Cameras and sensors fed back a live camera feed to control units and computers on XV Patrick Blackett with could then be analysed.
While the APAC – Autonomous PACific – has been tested at sea abroad, this was the first time it’s been done in home waters and through the busy waterways of Portsmouth Harbour
It is hoped that the craft can be used to protect sailors by remotely performing tasks such as rescues, intercepting drug runners and moving sailors between ships and shore.
Commander Michael Hutchinson, commanding officer of XV Patrick Blackett and part of the NavyX team, said:
"Integrating crewed and uncrewed systems and operating them at the same time is a huge step forward for the Royal Navy.
"This is the first time a fully autonomous and crewless boat has been operated in UK waters and we have achieved this throughout the week in different conditions and completing a range of tests.
"It forms the backbone for further integration that future ships will have with autonomous technology. The trials and experiments we do will develop the Standard Operating Procedures for the APAC and how to use uncrewed systems effectively for warfighting.”
An autonomous rib could be deployed to do recces, as a force protector against threats and even to launch weapons – minimising the risk to sailors who might otherwise be tasked with those missions.
Commander Hutchinson added:
"What’s great about these trials and this piece of kit is it’s something we already have and something the Royal Navy already deploys.
"But adapting it to be used autonomously means we can do more with it and use it for a wider range of operations."