Recent weeks have seen a report from ASV Global, a leading manufacturer of Autonomous Surface Vehicles, that one unit has reached the landmark of 1000 days of unmanned operations. This milestone was reached during the Unmanned Warrior 2016 naval presentation which saw more than 50 unmanned vehicles operating in a variety of themed activities. With this the Royal Navy was able to see first-hand how these types of systems and sensors could integrate into current and future operations.

A number of ASV Global developed vehicles and systems participated in the event including converted vessels such as BAE Systems’ Pacific 950 and Pacific 24 RIBs and Dstl’s Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed (MAST) based on the innovative Bladerunner hull shape. The event also showcased vehicles designed and built by ASV Global including the commercial vehicle C-Worker 5 (illustrated) and the Thales’ mine countermeasures demonstrator platform known as Halcyon.

Dan Hook, Managing Director of ASV Global commented: ‘Completing 1000 days of unmanned operations during Unmanned Warrior, the world’s first large scale demonstration of maritime autonomous systems, could not have been more timely. This exemplifies the increasing speed of adoption of ASV technology and is a real testament to all of the hard work and dedication from the team.’