Iran: 'Cutting-edge' mine-hunting tech and counter drone ships to deploy with HMS Dragon to Strait of Hormuz

Sophisticated new systems will be deployed in support of a Royal Navy destroyer in the Middle East.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced that autonomous mine hunting equipment and counter drone systems will be used alongside HMS Dragon. The Portsmouth-based Type 45 destroyer has been pre-positioned in the region, and will be part of a multinational force - primarily lead by France - that will keep the Strait of Hormuz open.

Roughly 20 per cent of the world’s crude oil and liquified natural gas flows through the strategic waterway. It has effectively been closed for much of past few months after US-Israeli forces conducted bombing raids over Iran, leading to retaliatory attacks that brought the region into chaos.

HMS Dragon will be part of a defensive mission to reopen the area and protect merchant ships once conditions allow, the MoD previously said. This is expected to be when the conflict ends. A brittle ceasefire is holding but peace talks have reached an impasse.

The government has backed the deployment with £115m of new funding for mine-hunting drones and counter-drone systems. Underwater explosive have been laid in the region in a bid to cut off merchant shipping. Defence secretary John Healey said: “The UK is playing a leading role to secure the Strait of Hormuz, and we are demonstrating that today with new cutting-edge kit to protect our interests and secure the Strait.

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“New funding for autonomous mine-hunting and counter-drone systems, our advanced Typhoon jets, and HMS Dragon are strong and clear commitments – commitments to strengthen the confidence of commercial shipping and reduce the burden of the conflict on people at home. With our allies, this multinational mission will be defensive, independent, and credible.”

The Royal Navy’s modular ‘Beehive’ system will be used in the operation. High-speed autonomous Kraken drone boats will be used to sense, track, and identify potential threats and destroy them. UK Typhoon jets will conduct air patrols over the Strait of Hormuz as part of the mission. Mine-clearance specialists will also be used, who have been preparing in the UK for upcoming operations. HMS Dragon’s Sea Viper missile system makes her an ideal centrepiece of the operation.

The destroyer is already on her way to the Middle East, with further training calibrating her advanced systems. RFA Lyme Bay is continuing to be upgraded and equipped with cutting-edge equipment to allow her to become a mothership of autonomous systems.

More than 1,000 British personnel are across the region, including counter-drone teams and fast jet squadrons that have played an important role in protecting British nationals and allied nations in the Middle East. The defensive mission aims to allow for the freedom of navigation to continue, restoring confidence for commercial shipping.