The
Common Combat System acts as the submarine’s ‘brain’
– controlling its ‘eyes’, ‘ears’ and ‘nervous
system’. Artful, the third in the Astute class family, is the
first to use this new technology which is now being retrofitted to earlier
Astute class submarines. Work will soon begin to also retrofit Vanguard
class submarines.
Paul Beavis, Combat Systems & Support Director for BAE Systems Submarines,
said:
“We worked with partners to design an innovative solution that
adapts commercial off-the-shelf products to provide the Royal Navy with
a step-change in technology - ensuring greater security and resilience
at a significantly reduced cost.
“The new command and control system was integrated ahead of schedule
so it was ready for the third submarine, rather than the fourth. It
is proving itself to be highly capable and will be rolled out across
the rest of the fleet – equipping the Royal Navy with the best,
most advanced technology available.”
The new system, provided by VMware, Dell and Aish, processes information
from submarine sensors to enable crew members to make important command
decisions. It was used during Artful’s torpedo test to interpret
sonar readings and then attack a moving target with a practice weapon. |
