LCS Mine Countermeasure Mission Package Completes Phase III Testing

The Navy completed Phase III end-to-end testing of the littoral combat ship (LCS) mine countermeasure mission package off the coast of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Oct. 2, fully assessing unmanned vehicle operations and verifying vehicle speeds, turns and sensor deployment and retrieval capabilities.

The tests, conducted at the South Florida Open Measurement Facility, were conducted by Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Panama City for the Navy’s Program Executive Office for Littoral and Mine Warfare (PEO LMW).

“Phase III is the culmination of the end-to-end testing. It gives us confidence that we will be ready for development testing on board USS Independence (LCS 2) in 2011,” said Capt. John W. Ailes, PEO LMW’s program manager for LCS mission modules.

For testing purposes and due to the operational schedule of the two delivered LCSs, the mission package was embarked aboard the Office of Naval Research vessel Seafighter, which acted as a surrogate for the LCS platform. Using Seafighter, mine countermeasure detachment Sailors were able to operate and test the mission module equipment systems at sea.

The test included full detect-to-engage scenarios, off-board vehicle tactics development, evaluation of tactical operation and maintenance procedures and evaluation of progress toward meeting key performance parameters.

The LCS Mission Modules Program successfully executed the first two phases of end-to-end testing in September 2008 and September 2009, respectively. Phase I focused on constructing mock-ups of USS Freedom (LCS 1) and LCS 2 mission bay areas to conduct system interface checks, handling, and load-out of support containers and mine countermeasure systems. Phase II testing focused on validating the ability of the Mission Package Computing Environment to establish connectivity through the Multi-Vehicle Communications System and enable operations of surface and sub-surface off-board vehicles.

PEO LMW is an affiliated Program Executive Office of the Naval Sea Systems Command, which designs, delivers and maintains the systems, equipment and weapons needed by the warfighter to dominate the littoral battle space and provide the assured access to the warfighter.

Source : US Navy