Thales, HII developing advanced autonomous undersea mine countermeasure capabilities

HII and Thales announced the successful integration and field exercise of the Thales SAMDIS1 600 sonar with HII’s next generation REMUS 620 medium unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV).

The integration demonstrates the seamless compatibility of Thales’ world-leading multi-aspect synthetic aperture SAMDIS 600 sonar with HII’s highly modular, long-endurance REMUS 620 UUV. Together, the systems deliver advanced autonomous mine detection, classification, and imaging, offering naval forces and partners around the world enhanced capability for undersea security, mine countermeasures, and subsea infrastructure monitoring.

The exercise, completed at the end of August at the HII facility in Pocasset, Massachusetts, marks a major milestone in advancing autonomous undersea mine countermeasure capabilities.

“Teaming the Thales’ advanced SAMDIS 600 sensor in the REMUS 620 underscores the power of collaboration in driving innovation for our customers,” says Duane Fotheringham, president of Mission Technologies’ Unmanned Systems business group. “This milestone demonstrates not only the adaptability of the REMUS 620 but also the strength of industry partnerships in delivering next-generation, interoperable solutions that enhance undersea dominance for NATO and allied forces.”

“SAMDIS empowers missions with enhanced efficiency and effectiveness, serving as a crucial enabler for precise acoustic identification through its multi-aspect and high-resolution SAS capabilities,” says Paul Armstrong, managing director, Underwater Systems, Thales in the United Kingdom. “This achievement is the result of a strong working relationship with HII, demonstrating the strength of industry collaboration in delivering advanced solutions for the benefit of our users' missions.”

HII and Thales’ collaboration builds on decades of leadership in unmanned and underwater systems. Thales is the world’s leading exporter of naval sonar systems, while HII’s REMUS UUV family has become the benchmark for modular, reliable, and mission-ready autonomous undersea vehicles.