View source for Minehunter

{{Short description|Vessel for detecting and destroying naval mines}}
{{refimprove|date=October 2017}}

[[File:USS Raven MHC 61 Persian Gulf.jpg|thumb|A [[US Navy]] [[Osprey-class minehunter|coastal minehunter]]]]
[[File:Minenjagddrohne Pinguin.jpg|thumb|right|A minehunting ROV of the [[German Navy]] with explosive charges underneath the main body]]
[[File:US Navy 080610-G-6464J-020 Members of Canadian Maritime Operations Group 4, Maritime Forces Pacific, based in Esquimalt, British Columbia, lower the Dorado, a 30-ft, 7-ton Interim Remote Mine Hunting and Detection System (IRMDS.jpg|thumb|right|Canadian Navy minehunting ROV]]

A '''minehunter''' is a [[naval ship|naval vessel]] that seeks, detects, and destroys individual [[naval mine]]s. [[Minesweeper]]s, on the other hand, clear mined areas as a whole, without prior detection of mines. A vessel that combines both of these roles is known as a [[mine countermeasures vessel]] (MCMV).

== Description ==
A minehunter uses an imaging [[sonar]] to detect and classify targets and then sends out divers or [[remotely operated vehicle]]s (ROVs) to inspect and neutralise the threat, often using small [[explosives|charges]] that are detonated remotely.

As minehunters will often be operating in close proximity to mines, they are designed so as to reduce their own [[acoustics|acoustic]] and [[magnetism|magnetic]] signatures,<ref>{{Cite book|title=Exploitation of a Ship's Magnetic Field Signatures|last=Holmes|first=John J.|publisher=Morgan & Claypool Publishers|year=2006|isbn=9781598290745}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Reduction of a Ship's Magnetic Field Signature|last=Holmes|first=John J.|publisher=Morgan & Claypool Publishers|year=2008|isbn=9781598292480}}</ref><ref>MAGNETIC SILENCING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF NONMAGNETIC SHIPS AND CRAFT (METRIC), Department of Defense</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cedrat-technologies.com/fileadmin/user_upload/cedrat_groupe/Publications/Publications/2002/03/Magnetic_discretion_of_naval_propulsion_machines.pdf|title=Magnetic Discretion of Naval Propulsion Machines|first=B.|last=Froidurot|first2=L. L.|last2=Rouve|first3=A.|last3=Foggia|first4=J. P.|last4=Bongiraud|first5=G.|last5=Meunier|date=2002|website=Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906181025/http://www.cedrat-technologies.com/fileadmin/user_upload/cedrat_groupe/Publications/Publications/2002/03/Magnetic_discretion_of_naval_propulsion_machines.pdf|archive-date=2017-09-06|url-status=dead}}</ref> two common forms of trigger for mines. For example, they are often [[soundproofing|soundproofed]] by mounting machinery on [[shock absorber]]s or by using quiet [[diesel-electric|electrical drive]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.engineeringmatters.com/Low%20Magnetic%20Signature%20Propulsion%20System.pdf|title=Low Magnetic Signature Propulsion System|last=Cope|first=C.|date=1996|website=Engineering Matters|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131107155023/http://www.engineeringmatters.com/Low%20Magnetic%20Signature%20Propulsion%20System.pdf|archive-date=2013-11-07|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[low magnetic electric motor]]s<ref>{{Cite journal|title="Reduction of Magnetic Strayfield from Squirrel-cage Induction Motors", COMBIMAC document, 02 91.|issue=3|pages=628–632|last=Hasper|first=H.|date=September 1999|journal=IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion|volume=14|doi=10.1109/60.790926}}</ref>  and usually have a [[wood]], [[fiberglass]] or [[non-ferrous metal]] [[hull (watercraft)|hull]], or are [[degaussing|degaussed]] to reduce magnetic signature.<ref>Design Guide and Requirements for Equipment to Achieve a Low Magnetic Signature, Ministry of Defence.</ref>

Minehunters are generally small, [[draft (hull)|shallow-draught]] vessels, as they are often called upon to work in enclosed bodies of water such as [[shipping channel]]s or [[harbour]]s. As manoeuvrability in such areas is critical the [[Voith-Schneider|Voith-Schneider cycloidal propulsor]] is commonly used, allowing the engine thrust to be transmitted in any direction. A number of modern vessels use [[catamaran|catamaran hulls]] to provide a large, stable working platform with minimal underwater contact; this reduces draught whilst lowering acoustic transmission and reducing the [[fluid dynamics|fluid pressure]] generated by the moving hull that may otherwise detonate mines with a hydraulic pressure trigger.

==Coastal minehunter==
'''Coastal minehunters''' are ships that are designed to find, classify, and destroy moored and bottom [[naval mine|mines]] from vital waterways. Coastal minehunters are generally smaller and with lower sea-keeping and endurance than oceangoing minehunters. They are usually tasked with keeping fixed high-value [[choke point]]s clear of mines, such as the approaches to military ports and harbours. In a [[Cold War]] context it was especially important to protect those ports used by a nation's [[Submarine-launched ballistic missile|ballistic missile]] [[submarines]].

===Operation===
Minehunters differ from [[minesweeper]]s in that minesweepers are used against older [[magnetic mine]]s that are moored just below the surface. Minehunters are designed to seek out mines and destroy them individually, particularly against more advanced modern mines, which sit on the seabed and can be programmed to target specific vessel types (see [[CAPTOR mine]]). To do this they have mine-hunting [[sonar]] and can act as motherships and support craft for ROVs and [[Clearance diver|combat divers]]. However, in some circumstances many minehunters can also destroy less advanced magnetic moored mines in the traditional manner.

===Coastal minehunter classes===
*The [[US Navy]] {{Sclass|Osprey|minehunter|0}} coastal minehunter
*The [[Royal Navy]] {{Sclass|Sandown|minehunter|2}}
*The [[Finnish Navy]] {{sclass|Katanpää|mine countermeasure vessel|0}} coastal minehunter

==See also==
* [[Minesweeper]]
* [[List of mine warfare vessels of the United States Navy]]
* [[Bedok-class mine countermeasures vessel]] 
* {{sclass2|Tripartite|minehunter|1}}
* {{sclass|Lerici|minehunter|1}}
* [[Projekt 206FM-class minehunter]]
* [[AN/WLD-1 RMS Remote Minehunting System]]
*

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Warship types of the 19th & 20th centuries}}

[[Category:Minehunters| ]]
[[Category:Ship types]]

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