The UK Royal Navy is deploying ships and hundreds of sailors to the Strait of Hormuz to assist in mine clearance operations.
The auxiliary ship "RFA Lyme Bay" will depart from Gibraltar to the Middle East. It is loaded with munitions for mine detection and neutralization, as well as unmanned underwater vehicles equipped with hydroacoustic stations.
British intelligence indicates that Iran may have deployed a large number of various types of mines along the Strait of Hormuz, including moored, rocket-boosted, and bottom mines activated by contact, acoustic influence, or magnetic field changes.
The autonomous systems aboard "RFA Lyme Bay" will scan the seabed and surrounding waters using hydroacoustic stations, mapping potential threats twice as fast as traditional minesweepers.
