Vlissingen, the second of the series of mine countermeasures vessels of the Belgian-Dutch Replacement Mine CounterMeasure (rMCM) programme and the first intended for the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN), began its initial sea trials campaign from Concarneau in France on 27 March 2025.
During its first day at sea the ship’s performance was put to the test, in particular its propulsion system and manoeuvrability. Several more sea trials will follow to test all the systems on board before Vlissingen is delivered to the RNLN at the end of 2025.
The rMCM programme is being led by Belgium Naval & Robotics: a consortium formed by Naval Group and Exail that also involves Kership (a joint venture between Piriou and Naval Group) as industrial prime contractor.
The first vessel produced by the rMCM programme, Oostende, which is intended for the Belgian Naval Component, is currently undergoing combat system trials in Naval Group’s Lorient shipyard. It will be delivered during the summer of 2025. The first sea trials of Tournai, the third vessel of the programme and the second intended for the Belgian Naval Component, are planned for the end of summer 2025. The fourth vessel, Scheveningen, which is the second vessel intended for the RNLN, was launched in November 2024.
All 12 vessels ordered under the framework of the rMCM programme, six for each country, will be delivered before end of 2030.
In September 2023 a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between France, Belgium and the Netherlands that allows France to use a variant of the rMCM design to equip the French Navy with six vessels.
The rMCM programme was awarded to Belgium Naval & Robotics in 2019. Within the consortium Naval Group is responsible for ship design, overall mission systems integration, testing and commissioning. The ships are built and assembled by Kership and Chantier Piriou, under the overall industrial management of Kership. Exail is in charge of the unmanned mission system.
The rMCM ships are specialised and cyber-secured MCM vessels designed to embark and launch a combination of 12 m, 19-tonne unmanned surface vessels (USVs), autonomous underwater vessels (AUVs) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The vessels will use a mainly autonomous system for detection, classification, identification and neutralisation of mines, enabling the safe clearance of mined areas up to 10 times faster than traditional methods.
The rMCM vessels can withstand underwater explosions and have very low acoustic, electrical and magnetic signatures in line with their MCM mission. With a length of 82.6 m and a beam of 17 m, they displace 2,800 tonnes, have a range greater than 3,500 n miles (6,482 km), a maximum speed of 15.3 kts (28.3 km) and accommodate a crew of between 33 and 63 personnel.
Each vessel’s unmanned systems capabilities include: an Exail Umisoft software suite, two Exail Inspector 125 USVs, three Exail A18 AUVs equipped with Exail UMISAS 120 sonars), two T-18 towed sonar arrays equipped with Exail UMISAS 240 sonars, two mine identification and disposal systems (Exail Seascan and K-Ster C), two UMS Skeldar V-200 rotary-wing UAVs, and one Exail influence minesweeping system integrating five CTM magnetic modules and one Patria acoustic module.
The vessels additionally features two 7m rigid-hull inflatable boats, two side launch and recovery systems for USVs or commando boats, a 15-tonne rear crane and a 3-tonne overhead crane.
