AQS-24 sonar in new testing
Northrop Grumman’s AQS-24 mine hunting sonar has completed initial in-water testing of a next-generation Deploy and Retrieval payload, the company announced on 6 January.
During the test, the AQS-24 was operated from the Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vessel (MCM USV), demonstrating the unmanned operations needed to perform a mine hunting mission off the MCM mission package aboard the US Navy’s littoral combat ship (LCS).
The AQS-24B is a deployed system which uses side-scan sonar for real-time detection, localisation and classification of bottom and moored mines in addition to a laser line scanner for precise optical identification. Integration of the AQS-24 sonar with USVs allows for the real-time transmission of all AQS-24 data to a remote sonar operator, who can then commence real-time mission analysis of all recorded mission data.
The MCM USV tests are ahead of planned user-operated evaluation system testing of the AQS-24 on the LCS.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Maritime defence in the Mediterranean faces challenges from vulnerable land power]()
Maritime defence in the Mediterranean faces challenges from vulnerable land power
As an indispensable energy crossroads, the Mediterranean is at serious risk from grey zone disruption. As navies increasingly employ AI data centres, what happens when cutting-edge defence technologies rely on the very infrastructure most susceptible to hybrid tactics?
-
![US Navy to acquire micro-uncrewed underwater vehicles for ISR and coastal data collection]()
US Navy to acquire micro-uncrewed underwater vehicles for ISR and coastal data collection
The Naval Supply Systems Command is seeking authorised resellers of JaiaBot uncrewed underwater vehicles and multivehicle pods. The platforms will support undergraduate education at the US Naval Academy.
-
![NATO tests use of “undetectable, jam-proof” laser communication in maritime scenarios]()
NATO tests use of “undetectable, jam-proof” laser communication in maritime scenarios
As part of its effort to better prepare its capabilities for operations in contested and congested scenarios, NATO evaluated a Lithuanian ship-to-ship terminal designed to not be susceptible to enemy interference.
