RIVIERA BEACH, Fla., Sept. 10 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin has handed over its second production Remote Multi-Mission Vehicle to the U.S. Navy.
The RMMV is designed to boost mine countermeasures capabilities for DDG 51 Arleigh Burke Class destroyers and the Littoral Combat Ship, or LCS. Lockheed Martin said it handed over its first RMMV to the Navy in April.
Lockheed Martin described the RMMV as "a semi-submersible, semi-autonomous, unmanned vehicle that tows a variable-depth sensor to detect, localize, classify and identify undersea threats at a safe distance from friendly ships."
"The RMMV is the integral mobile subsystem of the Navy’s AN/WLD-1 Remote Minehunting System, or RMS, which includes the RMMV, a launch and retrieval system for the RMMV, the RMMV-towed sonar sensor, advanced communications equipment and software that integrates RMS into the host ship’s combat system," Lockheed Martin said.
"In its minehunting role, the RMMV transmits real-time mine sonar images to its host ship over a data link system. This mine reconnaissance capability will allow a naval Strike Group Commander to quickly and safely assess the threat of mines in prospective areas of operations," the company said. "In its AntiSubmarine Warfare -- ASW -- role the RMMV tows an active transducer and a multi-function receive array, transmitting submarine contact data via data links to the host ship," it said.
"In 2005, the Naval Sea Systems Command awarded Lockheed Martin a low-rate initial production contract for three RMMVs. In 2006 a contract was awarded for four more RMMVs. The RMMV is produced at Lockheed Martin’s Riviera Beach, Fla., facility," the company said.
“Delivery of the second production unit, just four months after the initial production unit delivery, clearly demonstrates the RMMV production team’s commitment to ‘mission success’ and ability to deliver results,” said John Bowen, Lockheed Martin’s senior program manager of the Remote Minehunting System Program.
“With the first unit now deployed on the USS Bainbridge we’re looking ahead to the first LCS deployment next year,” said Jim Weitzel, vice president of Lockheed Martin Undersea Systems’ Riviera Beach site.
