Through a cooperative effort, CMRE and partners leveraged of the unique MCM environment within Dynamic Mariner to push forward AUV technology.

From 29 September – 10 October, NRV Alliance sailed to southern France to participate in Dynamic Mariner 2020 (DYMR20). DYMR20 is a NATO-led exercise designed to train the Maritime component of the NATO Response Force, a high readiness and technologically advanced, multinational force that can deploy quickly, wherever needed. CMRE researchers tested technologies, developed at the Centre, to study the on-board detection and classification systems of autonomous underwater vehicles for Mine Countermeasures (MCM).

The CMRE MCM team conducted a number of activities during the exercise with their autonomous underwater mine-hunting vehicles, MUSCLE, BlackCat and BIONDo (Bi-modal Identification Or Neutralisation DemOnstrator). CMRE also hosted on-board NRV Alliance a US Navy MCM team from the 6th fleet detachment in Rota Spain, with their three MK18 Mod II vehicles. The CMRE and US vehicles were deployed together and demonstrated collaborative autonomous behaviours not only among the CMRE vehicles but also with US Navy MCM vehicles. The performance of CMRE's autonomous systems will be compared to that of conventional minehunting vessels.

CMRE's participation in DYMR20 was jointly funded by the US Navy Office of Naval Research and NATO Allied Command Transformation Innovation Branch.

Some exercise elements such as in-person interactions were scaled down due to the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic. In response to the pandemic, NATO implemented robust procedures to protect everyone that participated in the exercise and prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

For more information, please visit: https://mc.nato.int/media-centre/news/2020/nato-exercise-dynamic-mariner-brings-together-7-nato-nations