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Netherlands and Belgium boost ASW training

5th October 2021 - 16:15 GMT | by Shephard News Team in London

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The first of seven SEMA ASW targets has now entered Dutch service. (Photo: Royal Netherlands Navy)

The Dutch and Belgian navies have added a significant boost to their ASW training capabilities with the addition of seven SEMA targets from RTsys.

The Royal Netherlands Navy is now using the SEMA ASW practice target following evaluation by the Netherlands Research Agency, TNO.

SEMA is designed and manufactured by French company RTsys and is already in service with a number of navies, including those of France and India.

Just over two metres long, SEMA is an autonomous, recoverable, acoustic target dedicated to ASW training and torpedo firing exercises. It simulates a range of different submarines and can be used to train airborne, surface or sub-surface ASW operators.

The Dutch Navy has ordered seven SEMA systems. It will retain four and three will be provided to Belgium under the terms of the joint maritime initiative that sees the two countries share a naval headquarters and jointly procure materiel. Deliveries of the remaining six devices will continue over the coming months alongside an operator training programme.

According to RTsys, SEMA is ‘easy to deploy even from a RHIB; the navigation route is plotted with either waypoints or segments. Different types of training modes, such as passive, active and combined acoustics can be programmed.’

The training modes include: an acoustic echo-repeater (1-33kHz); five bands for active sonar frequency; two bands for active homing torpedo simulation; six narrowband (200Hz-38kHz); two broadband (450Hz-8kHz and 10-23kHz) and an acoustic recorder with data encryption.