the vehicle. No emissions means no detection. If successfully deployed these developments constitute a major development in unmanned vehicle technology. of their collaboration with BAE Systems. From the Altranet satellite dish mounted land vehicle to the Le Mans race car as well as the Talisman exterior, the full range of Lola activities were exhibited as pictured below with Anika from SAE-UK.

An interesting collaboration was on show between unmanned

Onboard Anika tries out the Captain’s chair and surveys the panorama view below. Immediately to the fore were located the vertical launch missiles capable of speeds of Mach Two and can be deployed without any human intervention whatsoever, they explode out of the vertical encasements although no further information could be disclosed, particularly not the number of any particular armaments carried on board. Around the bridge were located a number of defensive weaponry mounts. Sea-Gnats are a common defensive technology deployed universally throughout the services. This anti-missile technology can be rapidly deployed in less than two seconds to meet and greet incoming missiles. Powder metallic explosions near the ship produced by the detonated Sea-Gnats can provide a larger and distanced target area for the missile to either detonate prematurely or in the wrong location. Similar technologies are common place on many land vehicles and follow a similar if not smaller configuration as shown below. Their immediate deployment can be actioned from three stations on board the ship as opposed to the normal deployment through the various chains of command.

Located either side of the bridge adjacent to the Sea-Gnat were the mini-guns, which could only be described as anything but mini. Firing 4000 rounds a minute they never do so as the four rotating barrels begin to melt after the first30 second salvo of 2000 rounds, bullet cases are fed away from the operators by an exhaust tube which delivers the spent cases onto the lower decks, where no photography was allowed. Three decks down we were given a tour of the impressive combat information centre (CIC) onboard HMS

Kent. In the near corner were located the controls for the large shell gun above deck. No one is allowed on the above deck during the firing of this weapon which is activated by a foot pedal underneath the operator’s desk. Diametrically opposite a day light projector displays in-theatre data. In battle conditions this is the brightest source of illumination as operators either side of the room have only a small yellow directed beam of light shining down onto a focused patch of their workspace. Otherwise all data is displayed electronically to operators working four hours on and eight hours off then four hours on each day.

The combat information centre located three decks down from the bridge is situated around the water line to reduce the roll experienced by the operators. The CIC is crammed with all the usual technology such as passive and active radar, fire control, and underside illuminated navigation map tables. All of the vessels we toured at the DSEi were capable of passive radar. NATO catalogues on board provide the necessary data to identify every vessel down to its name just from the vessels own radar detection signal. Navigation maps were kept under lock and key in the navigator’s office behind the bridge for the duration of the tours. The CIC was mainly monitor driven, the engineering centre of the ship was driven by walls of diagnostic equipment where screens were strangely absent, in a Rolls Royce custom built room at the heart of the ship power from the engines could be varied to meet the speeds requested from the bridge using mechanical controls and readings. In this room the generators, electric engines and gas turbines could be alternately employed to achieve thrust via the two propellers which drive the ship. For a rapid egress gas turbine drive will be selected to achieve the 28 knots for which HMS Kent was designed, other systems controlled from the engineering centre included an always-on chilled water system, this system, required for the maintenance of armament systems remains always on despite the ambient temperature to the irritation of the sailors.

General observations of the European fleet docked at the DSEi were different from the conditions anticipated: living space, work space, space in general was cramped. It seemed that on every walkway in every part of the ship the machines and systems protruded into the available space. The overall effect was one of confusion; whilst the thoroughfares seemed ample in size the protruding equipment stole back any sense of space. For the uninitiated the experience overall was claustrophobic. Water tight also means air tight and the absence of flowing air and the restricted freedom of movement enforces the sense of confinement. From afar the broad side profile implies a greater sense of space, whereas inside the narrowness of the vessel is palpable and immediately understood. For vessels of such long expeditions it seems harsh that human considerations should come such a poor second to the need to fulfill a defensive function. On long voyages this initial sense of confinement must prove claustrophobic. Experienced sea sailors still complain about sickness made worse on the return leg of the journey where empty tanks reduce the overall ballast and cause the vessel to move like a cork bobbing in water. Fortunately many modern ships are equipped with the facility to pump sea water back into empty tanks to reduce this effect and many areas of the ship are air conditioned but life at sea must remain harsh. This is not what it looks like on silver screen where space seems so greatly exaggerated.

Dr. Anthony Mc Donagh-Smith
Editor Defence Integration.org