Seafox drone
HMS Bangor deploys SeaFox-C off Libya in 2011 | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | SeaFox |
| Builders | Atlas Elektronik |
| Operators | United States Romania |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Unmanned Undersea Vehicle |
| Length | 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in) |
| Propulsion | Four independent motors plus hover thruster |
| Speed | Max. 4kn |
| Range | 1 km (0.62 mi) |
| Endurance | ~ 800m |
The SeaFox is an anti-mine Unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) manufactured by German company Atlas Elektronik. It is designed to locate and destroy ground and moored mines. There are three versions, including a training version. The orange SeaFox-I "inspection" variant has sonar and an Inertial navigation system, and the black SeaFox-C "combat" round also has a 1.4 kilograms (3.1 lb) shaped charge warhead. The system is in service with eleven navies.
The SeaFox is an advanced design of an Expendable Mine Disposal Vehicle or EMDV. It has a low life cycle cost as it has low running and replacement costs. Its main targets are sea mines that pose a danger to vessels. It communicates with the ship via a fiber-optic cable. The SeaFox uses a custom launch and retrieval system, that may be fitted to a variety of ships, boats or even helicopters. It can be used for a range of tasks such as conduct damage estimation, route surveys, maritime boundary control, intelligence and harbor surveillance missions.