The Underwater Centre hosts ground breaking submarine trial
Rolls-Royce has conducted the first open water trial of the groundbreaking new NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS) at the Underwater Centre in Fort William, The UK’s leading commercial diving training centre.
The Underwater Centre was chosen as the ideal site for the trial due to its world class support facilities, as well as the unique location and topography of Loch Linnhe, one of Scotland’s deepest lochs. The sea loch provided the trials team with realistic sea conditions as well as multiple depths to test NSRS.
Scheduled for service in 2008 and jointly developed and funded by the NATO countries of France, Norway and the UK, NSRS comprises of a remotely operated submersible or ROV that locates and establishes underwater communications with the distressed submarine. A larger manned Submarine Rescue Vehicle (SRV) then docks with the submarine and rescues the crew, and finally aboard the mothership, a decompression system is used to treat up to 72 rescuees simultaneously.
The development of the new Submarine Rescue System follows a number of high profile incidents involving stricken submarines, most notably the Kursk disaster in 2000 which resulted in the tragic death of 118 Russian Navy crew.
Rolls-Royce programme manager, Jonty Powis, comments:
‘The extensive facilities which are provided here by The Underwater Centre and the established history with previous trials of other submersibles, such as the LR5 and UK Submarine Rescue Service, have allowed us to test the increased capability of our new remotely operated vehicles and submersibles with great confidence. This is the first trial in open water of the NSRS, but is the first of several planned here at The Underwater Centre in Fort William.’
General Manager of The Underwater Centre, Steve Ham, adds;
‘We are delighted to welcome such a prestigious company like Rolls-Royce to The Underwater Centre to carry out the NSRS trials on behalf of France, Norway and the UK. It is also a privilege to be involved in the development of such an important submersible, especially given its role with NATO. We are in a great position here on Loch Linnhe to be able to provide optimal trials opportunities for companies like Rolls-Royce. Our location, facilities and experience mean we can really provide the best.’