Page 26: of Marine Technology Magazine (September 2013)

General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems com- pleted the comprehensive risk reduction program for the U.S. Navy?s Knife sh Surface Mine Countermeasure Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (UUV) program. Designed to discover any potential systems defect early on in the program?s develop- ment phase, the con guration item test (CIT) successfully veri ed key components within the UUV system including the hardware architecture and critical areas of hardware and software integration. ?The completion of this signi cant milestone is a great achievement for our Knife sh team,? said Thomas Kirch- maier, president of General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. ?Knife sh will help meet the constantly-evolving requirements of today?s  eet and greatly reduce risk to Navy personnel and ships.? The test program included subsystem tests of key payload components (high- delity SONAR and ultra-high-density data storage/recording), key propulsion components (qui- eter, more powerful propulsion) and key software interface elements. By performing the CIT effort at this phase of the Knife sh program, the team can identify critical elements that could be detrimental to the delivery and operational availabil- ity of the Knife sh program if left to the later program phases. ?Overcoming unique size, weight and power challenges are keystones to the successful deployment of the Navy?s Knife-  sh program,? said Tom Mason, senior program manager of General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. ?Com- pleting these early discovery programs is critical for meeting the program?s schedule and cost requirements.? Knife sh will be a critical part of the Navy?s Littoral Com- bat Ship mine warfare mission package, providing the  eet mine warfare commander and sailors with enhanced mine- hunting capabilities. Scheduled for operations beginning in 2017, Knife sh will reduce risk to personnel by operating in the mine eld as an off-board sensor while the host ship stays outside the mine eld boundaries. The Knife sh system will include two UUVs, in addition to launch and recovery equip- ment, a support container, spare parts and support equipment. The U.S. Navy?s Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) awarded General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems a contract to design and build Knife sh in September 2011. The General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems team on the Knife sh program includes Blue n Robotics (Quincy, Mass.), Ultra Electronic Ocean Systems (Braintree, Mass.), Oceaneering International, Inc. (Houston, Texas), Metron (Reston, Va.), Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State University (State College, Pa.), 3 Phoenix (Hanover, Md.), General Dynamics Information Technology (Fairfax, Va.) and ASRC Research Technology Solutions (Greenbelt, Md.). gd-ais.comgeneraldynamics.comNews General Dynamics Tests U.S. Navy UUVs September 201326 MTRMTR #7 (18-33).indd 26MTR #7 (18-33).indd 268/22/2013 10:21:30 AM8/22/2013 10:21:30 AM