ROYAL NAVY MERLIN COMPLETES ANTI-SUBMARINE WARFARE TRIALS

26 May 1999

Three Merlin HM Mk1 helicopters have now completed the first of a series of trials in the Bahamas to assess the system's operational performance. Prime Contractor Lockheed Martin ASIC and GKN Westland Helicopters recently concluded the first deployment in support of Operational Performance Acceptance Procedure (OPAP) development trials which concentrated on the aircraft's Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) capability. The three helicopters, designated PP5, RN02 and RN03 undertook the trials at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Centre (AUTEC) on Andros Island in the Bahamas. The AUTEC ranges are a detachment of the US Naval Undersea Warfare Centre based at Newport, Rhode Island. It provides a deep water (1000 fathoms) capability for underwater weapon testing as well as a three-dimensional instrumented tracking range. During the trials, Merlin was required to detect and localise a submarine. The aircraft demonstrated its capability to achieve specified weapon release accuracies using sonobuoys and active dipping sonar to detect, track and localise the target. Merlin also demonstrated its ability to meet weapon release accuracies when one aircraft, in contact with the target, provided information that enabled a second aircraft to fly to the weapon release point. The trials commenced in mid-March and all the aircraft returned to the UK on 11 May.

Lockheed Martin's Technical Director, Joe Harland, was very pleased with the success of the trials and said, "the AUTEC trials are a very important part of our comprehensive test programme for the Merlin system. As you would expect on a programme of this complexity, we did identify some aspects of the system that need continued development but through the trials we also proved the awesome potential of this anti-submarine warfare system. There is no doubt the Royal Navy will have a world class ASW capability in Merlin".

Lockheed Martin and GKN Westland supported the trials at AUTEC for the full duration of two months. GKN Westland also operated a Trials Support Cell at Yeovil, which provided around the clock support for spares and other logistic support requests. The aircraft were transported to and from the USA by commercial Ro-Ro ship and then self-deployed to and from Andros Island.

Three Merlin HM Mk1 aircraft will return to AUTEC in the spring of 2000 to undertake additional OPAP trials. Based on this recent set of results, both Lockheed Martin and GKN Westland Helicopters are confident that Merlin will meet its operational performance specification.