The operation took place off the coast of Senegal and Cape Verde, and security teams boarded 24 boats while looking for instances of narcotics, human trafficking and illegal fishing. The mission was not just to search for such crimes, but to improve the host country’s capability to counteract those crimes in the future.
“It provides a comprehensive maritime domain awareness picture for dark, gray and light targets — vessels that range from no electronic emissions to those that cooperatively report their name and positions,” said Michael Pollock, the Office of Naval Research’s division director for electronics, sensors and networks, in a statement. “Rough Rhino provided them one of the clearest maritime operational pictures that they’ve ever seen. They could detect, locate, quantify and confirm detailed activities of all vessels in their respective countries’ exclusive economic zones.”
The system includes radars, optics, electronic surveillance devices and integrated software developed by Office of Naval Research contractors and the Naval Research Laboratory. Rough Rhino was installed on the Naval Research Laboratory’s VXS-1 P-3, USS Simpson and Senegalese ships SNS Poponguine and SNS Djiffere.
Rough Rhino has now been used in five major operations, including AMLEP 2011. The U.S. Navy has worked with African navies and coast guards since 2007 with the common goal of improving maritime safety and security. For future operations, the Office of Naval Research announced in a press release, Gambia and Senegal will continue to work with African partner nations.
