On the recent visit of HMS Ocean at the port of Haifa, the flagship of the Royal Navy participated in a mine warfare exercise at the Haifa Bay, where Israeli Seagull Unmanned Surface Vessels (USV) acted as pathfinders for the British amphibious support helicopter carrier, sailing in simulated mine-infested waters. The mission was part of a joint exercise between the Israeli Navy and the British Royal Navy in the Haifa Bay. HMS OCEAN has returned to her base-port in HMNB Devonport after completing her final deployment prior to decommissioning in 2018.
During the exercise, the Seagull performed a Mine Counter Measure (MCM) mission, scanning and charting a secure path for HMS Ocean. Once encountering mine-like-objects, the Seagull alerted HMS Ocean to avoid them, thus securing its safe route. The Seagull performed the mission while being remotely operated from a Mission Control Station onshore. Developed by Elbit Systems, the Seagull is a modular USV that can be configured for a variety of naval missions, including mine countermeasures and anti-submarine warfare. In addition to the Israel Navy, Seagull is undergoing evaluations by a number of foreign navies.
