Page 14 - ADT NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2021 Online Magazine

resents what SCO does best: integrate mature mentation. In September, the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command [ UNMANNED SYSTEMS ]
technologies to accelerate service priorities (NAVCENT) also announced the creation of Task Force 59, and in
and create new capabilities for our warfight- the following month the task force completed its first at-sea exer-
ers,'' Jay Dryer, director of the SCO said. cise featuring unmanned vessels sailing in concert with friendly
foreign ships.
The Ghost Fleet Overlord program is part of an
effort to accelerate the Navy's push to incor- During the two-day training exercise, the Task Force 59 integrated
porate autonomous vessels within its fleet to and evaluated the new Man-Portable Tactical Autonomous Systems
better expand the reach of manned vessels. (MANTAS) T12 USV that operated alongside manned U.S. patrol
Autonomy includes more than just straight-line craft and Bahrain Defense Force maritime assets.
passage through large areas of the ocean; it
also involves such things as collision avoidance
and following the rules of the sea. “WORKING WITH OUR REGIONAL PARTNERS ON
UNMANNED SYSTEMS INTEGRATION IS CRUCIAL
To help the Navy advance its goal to incor- TO ENHANCING COLLECTIVE MARITIME DOMAIN
porate autonomous vessels within the fleet,
the SCO's Ghost Fleet Overlord program has AWARENESS,” said Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of
taken commercial ocean-going vessels and NAVCENT, U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces.
integrated both commercially-available and “BAHRAIN, AS OUR FIRST REGIONAL PARTNER
government-provided equipment on board to TO COLLABORATE WITH THE TASK FORCE 59
create unmanned surface vessels. Phase II DURING AN AT-SEA EXERCISE, DEMONSTRATES
of the Ghost Fleet Overlord program, which
focuses on the integration of government-fur- THE STRENGTHENING OF OUR STRATEGIC
nished command-and-control systems and RELATIONSHIP.”
payloads and more complex and challenging
naval operations experimentation, began last The MANTAS T-12 possesses advanced capabilities compared to
September. The SCO will transition its two its predecessors. It is intended to serve the intelligence, surveillance
Ghost Fleet Overlord prototypes to the Surface and reconnaissance (ISR) missions of the naval forces.
Development Squadron One by the end of
fiscal year 2021. The Navy is currently acquir- The USV measures 361cm (142in) long, 91.5cm (36in) wide and
ing two more Ghost Fleet Overlord prototypes 36cm (14in) high. It has a draft of 18cm (7in), a maximum craft
to accompany the two SCO built to continue weight of 95kg (210lb), and can carry up to 63.5kg (140lb) of pay-
unmanned systems testing and fleet experi- load.

14 | November / December 2021 WWW .GBP .COM.SG/ ADT