Navy and General Dynamics test Knifefish mine-hunting undersea drone

The U.S. Navy and General Dynamics Mission Systems have completed an evaluation of the Knifefish autonomous surface mine countermeasure (SMCM) unmanned undersea vehicle (UUV). The tests were conducted in Boston, and made use of submerged mine-hunting test targets supplied by the Navy. "The system performed well against a variety of surrogate targets and we are confident we will refine its performance to support the planned schedule in 2017," says Jon Rucker, program manager of the Navy Unmanned Maritime Systems Program Office (PMS406). The comprehensive assessment showed the capability of the UUV to detect and classify potential mines at various depths and on the sea floor.