Mar 11. Sonardyne completed a successful week at the inaugural NAVDEX defence exhibition in Abu Dhabi where it demonstrated the effectiveness of its Sentinel diver detection sonar in protecting high value marine assets. Twice a day, Royal Navy clearance divers from HMS Pembroke attempted to evade detection during a simulated underwater assault on the Sentinel-equipped ship as it lay alongside the show’s quay. On each occasion, Sentinel was able to detect the underwater threat as soon as the divers entered the water, raise a critical alarm and use its unique acoustic signature classification algorithm to identify the targets as ‘closed circuit divers’. Sonardyne’s Scylla underwater loudhailer would then automatically broadcast a warning to the divers that they had been detected. At long ranges, this proved to be more effective than the diver recall charges that were used to direct the divers to surface where they could be intercepted by a surface patrol craft. Away from the live action on the water, Sonardyne also announced a major integrated waterside security contract that it had won in the UAE in partnership with FLIR Systems Inc., USA. This news attracted a large international audience consisting of visitors from the military, government, commerce and the media to Sonardyne’s stand, keen to understand why Sentinel is now the world’s best selling diver detection sonar. Rob Balloch of Sonardyne said; “The NAVDEX event was a perfect opportunity for Sonardyne to showcase its ability to rapidly deploy a versatile, integrated and autonomous underwater security system. Our sincere thanks go to the Captain and crew of HMS Pembroke for their co-operation in making the Sentinel demonstrations a complete success.”Sentinel intruder detection sonar systems are now operational worldwide where they are protecting both commercial and military assets. These include critical civilian infrastructure and energy resources, VIPs and maritime borders. The system uses advanced sonar technology to provide a 360 degree, below water protection zone that can discriminate between genuine targets such as divers and swimmers and non-threats such as large fish or pleasure craft. Sentinel has been designed specifically for ease of use by security personnel and to meet the practical requirements of everyday use. A Sonardyne Sentinel may be deployed from a vessel by simply lowering the compact sonar head into the water ‘over the side’ or via a through-hull deployment system. The system can also be mounted on a seabed frame or mounted on the side of a jetty to create a permanent installation for monitoring a port entrance, for example. When coverage of larger areas is necessary, up to 10 Sentinel heads can be integrated where the requirement is to protect a large area of strategic coastal or offshore infrastructure.