The system formed part of the security measures to protect the America's Cup facilities during this summer's ranking events in Valencia. Two unauthorised divers were detected during the deployment - although it transpired that they posed no security threat.
QinetiQ leased two Cerberus units to Elecnor Seguridad, the Spanish company contracted to provide security systems for the duration of the 2006 ranking events in Valencia. The two Cerberus units were positioned in such a way to detect any divers or swimmers approaching the entrance to the Port of Valencia, and also inside the inner harbour basin. The current America's Cup, the most famous and prestigious yachting trophy, concluded in summer 2007.
Cerberus is able to detect and locate swimmers and divers at ranges exceeding 800 metres, providing operators with sufficient time to establish whether that individual represents a threat and decide upon an appropriate response. The system has previously been deployed with naval forces around the world, including the US Navy in the Middle East, but Valencia represented the first non-military deployment of the system anywhere in the world.
Concerns about underwater security threats have been raised by attacks on military and high value maritime targets in recent years. Cerberus has been designed and developed to specifically address those threats.
Andrew Sleigh, Group Managing Director of QinetiQ's Defence and Technology Sector, said: "We were delighted to be working with Elecnor in Valencia during the America's Cup ranking races. Cerberus proved itself, providing an added dimension to the security of this prestigious event and helping ensure a safe and secure sailing experience for competitors and spectators alike."
Cerberus can be deployed as a single unit to provide 360° cover for ship protection by being slung from the side of the vessel or built into the vessel's hull. Alternatively, a number of units can be attached to the seabed in a cordon to provide harbour security and channel protection. Deployed in this manner, the detection range is extended to one kilometre and beyond.
The main technical challenge in safeguarding ships and harbours from such threats has been the difficulty in locating a human diver because of the lack of a strong sonar target return. Extremely limited underwater visibility greatly reduces the effect of underwater surveillance techniques relying on cameras operating in the visible band. Cerberus' detection capability represents a significant step forward in tackling this challenge.
Cerberus also provides an inbuilt target classification response enabling operators to decide on an appropriate response to a situation. The sonar returns provided by the target when using Cerberus are interpreted by the sophisticated tracking system to make basic decisions on the nature of the approaching target. For example, the system will distinguish between schools of fish and ships wakes, divers on open circuit breathing apparatus and stealth divers on rebreathers. Even tidal flotsam and jetsam can be separated from the target field, helping to reduce false alarms.