| CHINA SEEKS TO RECRUIT BRITISH CITIZENS IN SENSITIVE POSITIONS

The British government has issued a warning about the targeting of British officials in key political, defence and business positions by Chinese spies. This is part of an increasingly sophisticated espionage operation aimed at obtaining secret information.

In response to a July parliamentary report criticising the government’s inadequate response to the Chinese threat, the government emphasised the “prolific” scale of Chinese espionage. The government said that Chinese recruitment programmes have made efforts to place British and allied nationals in positions of influence with sensitive knowledge and experience.

Ken McCallum, the head of Britain’s counterintelligence service MI5, also noted that people working on cutting-edge technology are of interest to geopolitics, even if they are not interested in geopolitics themselves. He added that more than 20,000 people in the UK had been secretly contacted online by Chinese spies.

Concern about Chinese activities in the UK has increased, especially after the recent revelation that a parliamentary researcher was arrested in March on suspicion of spying for China.The arrest of the young researcher, who denied being a spy, has led to calls by British members of parliament for a tougher stance.              The Chinese foreign ministry called the spying claims “entirely groundless”.

Improvements needed

In a highly critical report, the Intelligence and Security Committee pointed out that Beijing had successfully infiltrated every sector of the UK economy and that the government had been slow to address the threat. The committee’s four-year enquiry concluded that China is undertaking an all-out assault on Britain and that the government is responding poorly, prioritising short-term economic interests. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak acknowledged the report’s findings and stressed that improvements were needed in the areas mentioned.

To address the escalating situation, MI5 has significantly expanded its investigations into Chinese activities and is now conducting seven times as many investigations as it did in 2018, with plans to expand further. The government has set up a special unit to protect elections from foreign interference.                                                                                                                                                       Last year, MI5 issued a rare security alert informing members of parliament about a suspected Chinese spy involved in political interference activities in the UK. In addition, a newspaper report in October revealed that MI5 had warned the ruling party about two potential candidates suspected of being Chinese spies.

The government assured that civil servants are regularly vetted and has introduced software to detect fake profiles on social media platforms. More than 25,000 people have used the “Think Before You Link” app, launched last year, to report suspicious approaches by people, including those suspected of being linked to Chinese intelligence services.

| NATO’S DOG HANDLERS

Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) dog handlers from across Allied countries gathered in Lithuania to carry out practical training together as part of exercise Engineer Thunder 23.

The dogs were presented with challenging scenarios to test their sense of sight and smell. Military working dogs are an indispensable part of NATO’s forces, playing crucial roles in Allied military police, engineer and special operations units.

Organised and hosted by the Lithuanian Army’s Colonel Juozas Vitkus Engineering Battalion, the multinational exercise Engineer Thunder 23 featured the participation by over 1,000 troops from 11 NATO Allies.

« The work from a dog is with this nose, and that can’t be achieved in my point of view with the machine. And that’s for me the biggest difference between a machine and a dog. And also, like I said before, you have a connection with your dog.

And I like more this type of job because you can play with them. With the machine, you can’t play, you do your job, you put it in a box and it’s finished but here, you’re never finished. You’re always busy with your dog. And that’s what I like about it. » says dog handler 1st Corporal Francis from the Belgian Army.

| NEW REPORT EXPLORES LINKS BETWEEN DRUG MARKETS AND GUN VIOLENCE IN THE EU

The links between drug markets and gun violence in the EU are explored in a new report from the EMCDDA and the Flemish Peace Institute. The analysis responds to a need for further research into the issue, at a time of rising drug-related violence in Europe.

On average, over a quarter (28%) of the firearms seizures in Europe are estimated to have occurred in the context of drug trafficking, with this figure close to a half (44%) in some EU Member States (UNODC). The UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs has emphasised the need to address the links between the illicit trafficking in drugs and firearms. In Resolution 65/2, it encouraged states to take appropriate measures to prevent and combat these links, by enhancing border control management, information exchange and international operational cooperation.

The report identifies the Balkan route as a key transit route for firearms and drugs into the EU. Weapons and drugs are often smuggled along this route as part of multi-commodity transfers, or hidden in vehicles. The Western Balkans are an important source region of firearms trafficking into the EU. The arms moved from this region are often ‘conflict legacy weapons’ (e.g. from conflicts in the former Yugoslavia and the Albanian civil war). Firearms are often smuggled together with drugs by the same criminal networks or, at least, along well-established drug-trafficking routes.

The analysis shows how firearm traffickers have significantly exploited legal loopholes over the past 20 years to legally acquire weapons unable to fire live ammunition (e,g. alarm weapons, deactivated acoustic expansion weapons, small-calibre firearms) and convert them into live-firing weapons. The ease with which these weapons can be legally purchased and converted has strongly impacted the criminal availability of firearms in several EU countries. In various Member States, a higher availability of trafficked firearms on the illicit market has triggered drug-related gun violence.

In 2019, the EMCDDA and Europol noted that the criminal use of firearms by organised crime groups (OCGs) involved in European drug markets appeared to be increasing. Europol found that the use of drug-related violence has escalated in recent years, particularly linked to the cannabis and cocaine trade (SOCTA, 2021).

The report takes an in-depth look at the use of gun violence at the wholesale level of the drug distribution chain and the local consumer market. Violence appears generally less evident at the production and wholesale level than the consumer level of the drug market. Most of the drug-related gun violence at wholesale level in Europe is connected to cocaine. The recent shift from a few large networks dominating the cocaine market to a larger number of smaller competing networks may explain the upsurge in violence.

The local consumer market accounts for most of the visible drug-related gun violence. Many actors involved in this violence are young adults using guns as a means to advance their criminal career. Open drug markets — where buyers can purchase products without prior introduction to the seller — are more prone to violence than closed markets, which are built on relationships of trust between buyer and seller.

Finally, the report looks at the broader impact of firearms trafficking and associated violence in the drug trade on society as a whole. Residents or individuals working in the community may be threatened or extorted. Drug criminals may target innocent victims through cases of mistaken identity. And there may be spill-over effects, when violence moves beyond the criminal milieu (e.g. to Ministers, journalists).

The report underlines the need for sound intelligence on these security phenomena, including better ballistics data, law enforcement information and intelligence on firearms trafficking and criminal shootings. Such data and information are crucial to adequately inform evidence-based initiatives, support targeted law enforcement actions and evaluate policies.

| EIB BACKS €6.6 BILLION ENERGY, BUSINESS, TRANSPORT AND HEALTH INVESTMENT AROUND THE WORLD

• EIB Board of Directors approves €2.1 billion for climate action and clean energy
• Another €2.2 billion for sustainable transport, €1.9 billion for business investment and €403 million for education and regional development also approved in October’s meeting

The Board of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) today approved €6.6 billion of new financing to support energy and climate action investment and impact driven business financing, transform sustainable transport, improve education, and strengthen health and regional development in Europe and around the world.

“Today the EIB confirmed new support for investment to improve economic opportunities, transform sustainable transport and local services, and continue delivering on climate action. At a time of high interest rates and tightening financial conditions the EIB is playing a crucial counter-cyclical role amid an economic slowdown fuelled by geopolitical instability, war, and energy price volatility.” said Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bank.

Renewable energy and water

The EIB Board of Directors approved new financing to increase renewable energy generation and upgrade water infrastructure.

This includes backing construction of two large scale photovoltaic plants in south-western Spain with more than 250,000 solar panels producing 375 MWh of electricity a year.

Streamlined project financing for utility scale renewable energy plans in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Ireland and France, and financing for small-scale solar photovoltaic and wind power plants across France was also approved.

The EIB will finance new investment to reinforce and expand electricity transmission and distribution, as well as improving electricity connections to energy intensive battery manufacturing facilities across Hungary.

Water networks and wastewater treatment in Italy and the Czech Republic will be upgraded, and storm water drainage in towns transformed across the west African country of Benin by new EIB backed investment approved today.

The EIB Board also approved technical support for a new initiative to decarbonise electricity supply on the Greek islands.

Regional transport and electric vehicles

Sustainable passenger transport will be benefit from EIB financing for new battery-powered trains for routes in southern Germany and new electric trains and modernisation of rail lines and depots in central France.

The EIB will also back upgrading of 90km track of the railway between Koscierzyna and Gdynia in Poland, and electrification of the 88km line railway in north Macedonia between Kumanovo and the Bulgarian border.

Electric car use in Spain will also be facilitated by new support for 1,800 new electric vehicle charging points across Spain.

Corporate innovation and business investment

New financing to support business investment in Austria, Estonia, Germany, Italy, Latvia and Lithuania will be enhanced by lending programmes agreed with local financing partners.

The EIB will also finance corporate innovation to improve mobile data networks and advanced manufacturing of microelectronic components.

Access to equity finance by high-growth companies across Africa and debt finance by smaller companies supporting renewable energy generation in emerging markets will also be strengthened by new initiatives approved today at the meeting of the EIB’s Board of Directors.

Education and regional development

The EIB will support construction of a new university medical school and research centre Krakow in Poland.

Urban development to improve cultural facilities in the Czech Republic and investment to improve local transport, energy efficiency in public buildings and parks in the Croatian city of Dubrovnik will also be supported.

| FRONTEX INITIATES FIRST-LINE BORDER CHECKS OUTSIDE EU

Frontex marked a significant milestone in international border cooperation as the agency’s officers, for the first time, carried out first-line border checks at a border outside the European Union. The event occurred at the Palanca border crossing point, located between Moldova and Ukraine, where Frontex officers began performing border checks alongside Moldovan colleagues.

Frontex Executive Director, Hans Leijtens, attended the launch ceremony along with Diana Salcutan, Deputy Head of the Moldovan Border Police, and Serhii Deineko, Head of the Ukrainian State Border Guard Service.

“This is a historic moment. For the first time, we are cooperating with countries outside the EU to perform our primary job—securing borders, in this case, the Moldovan borders. In these difficult times, I extend my heartfelt sympathies to the Ukrainian people. I also offer my steadfast commitment to aiding Ukraine as much as possible,” Frontex Executive Director Hans Leijtens said.

The launch is part of Frontex Executive Director’s wider visit to Moldova, which included a meeting with Adrian Efros, the Moldovan Minister of Internal Affairs. During the meeting, Moldova and Frontex signed a Memorandum of Understanding, focusing on a complaints mechanism, which aims to address any allegations of breaches of fundamental rights during operational activities.

Hans Leijtens noted, “Moldova sets an example in its cooperation with Frontex, and we are fully committed to providing ongoing support to our partners here.”

Adrian Efros, Moldovan Minister of Interior, expressed his gratitude for the model cooperation with Frontex. This partnership has been instrumental in fighting various forms of cross-border crime, including smuggling of firearms, illicit goods, child trafficking, and migrant smuggling.

In a trilateral meeting with the heads of the Moldovan and Ukrainian Border Police, the discussion centred on how Frontex can bolster operational cooperation to address both current and anticipated challenges.

Frontex Joint Operation Moldova is the first comprehensive operational activity in a non-EU country that includes land and air borders under the same coordination structure. Frontex currently has 90 EU border guards in Moldova for border checks and surveillance.

| EIT INNOENERGY SUPPORTS HELIUP AND PARTICIPATES IN ITS INVESTMENT ROUND TO ACCELERATE ITS GROWTH

Fundraising to launch their production line

This round is led by Starquest Capital and includes EIT InnoEnergy, BNP Paribas Développement and IDEC Group. The company is also backed by BPI France in the regions, the France 2030 investment plan and several banks to complete the financing.

This injection of funds will enable HELIUP to invest in a production line for lightweight solar panels in France and accelerate its commercial development. The industrial line, with an initial capacity of 500,000 m²/year, i.e. 100 MWp/year, will be operational during 2024 to meet the strong demand for solarisation of roofs currently poorly covered by existing solutions, as the weight of conventional panels is incompatible with the structure of buildings.

Cutting-edge technology

HELIUP’s innovative photovoltaic panels are ultra-light, durable and highly efficient, making them ideal for solarizing large roofs on existing commercial, logistics and industrial buildings. Combined with a special integration system, they reduce the weight of the solar power plant by over 60%, with significant savings in installation time and cost.

At the end of the first industrial phase, the innovation developed will avoid more than 500,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions and save more than 7,000 tonnes of aluminium, 14,000 tonnes of glass and 30,000 tonnes of steel compared with ground-mounted solar power plants. What’s more, as the solution is deployed on rooftops, it helps preserve 350,000 hectares of land.

The technology is the result of more than three years’ development by CEA-LITEN teams.

This injection of funds will enable HELIUP to invest in a production line for lightweight solar panels in France and accelerate its commercial development. The industrial line, with an initial capacity of 500,000 m²/year, i.e. 100 MWp/year, will be operational during 2024 to meet the strong demand for solarisation of roofs currently poorly covered by existing solutions, as the weight of conventional panels is incompatible with the structure of buildings.

International ambitions

This breakthrough will transform rooftops into clean energy sources, reducing the carbon footprint of buildings and contributing to the fight against climate change, in particular by promoting self-consumption as part of a sustainable development approach.

The challenge of deploying rooftop solar power is an international one, and HELIUP is initiating projects in Europe with the ambition of exporting its solutions beyond France’s borders in the years to come.

| FDA AWARDS HISTOSONICS CLEARANCE OF ITS FIRST-OF-A-KIND EDISON HISTOTRIPSY SYSTEM THAT USES SOUND WAVES TO DISINTEGRATE TUMORS

HistoSonics has announced the marketing authorization of its “Breakthrough” platform via the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) De Novo Classification Request process, a rigorous pre-market review pathway for medical devices with no existing predicate. Marketing authorization makes Edison the first and only histotripsy platform available in the Unites States.

FDA authorization was based, in part, on data from the #HOPE4LIVER Trials in 13 trial sites across the US and Europe. Data pooled from both the US and European/UK trials were used to assess the clinical safety and efficacy of histotripsy in destroying targeted primary and secondary liver tumors. Histotripsy was noted to have achieved both primary safety and efficacy endpoints in the pooled data where 44 subjects were evaluated for safety and 44 tumors treated were evaluated for efficacy. Important to note was the heterogeneity of the treated subjects, 18 of which had hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tumors and 26 had metastatic tumors to the liver from the colon, rectum, breast, and other primary origins. As recently presented at the annual CIRSE Congress in Copenhagen, a technical success rate of 95.5% was achieved indicating that physicians can precisely target and destroy liver tissue and unresectable liver tumors. Also, only 3 procedures related CTCAE Grade 3 or higher adverse events through 30 days post-histotripsy were observed across all 44 subjects treated, representing a complication rate of 6.8% with each event being common to focal liver therapies and not specific to histotripsy.

The science of histotripsy uses focused sound energy to produce controlled acoustic cavitation that mechanically destroys and liquifies targeted liver tissue, including tumors, at sub-cellular levels. HistoSonics’ Edison System uses proprietary technology and advanced imaging to deliver personalized, non-invasive histotripsy treatments with precision and control. The company believes that the novel mechanism of action of their proprietary technology may provide significant advantages to patients, including the ability of the treatment site to recover and resorb quickly. Uniquely, the HistoSonics’ platform also provides physicians the ability to monitor the destruction of tissue under continuous real-time visualization and control, unlike any modality that exists today.

The Edison System is indicated for the non-invasive destruction of liver tumors, including unresectable liver tumors, using a non-thermal, mechanical process of focused ultrasound.

| FATF-INTERPOL PARTNERSHIP: PUTTING TRILLIONS IN ILLICIT PROFITS BACK INTO LEGITIMATE ECONOMIES

Igniting global asset recovery

Two world leaders in tackling financial crime – INTERPOL and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) – came together to help police around the world make better use of INTERPOL’s operational tools to track, freeze and seize criminals’ illegal property and money. With global organized crime thought to generate USD trillions in illegal wealth every year, and as criminals get increasingly innovative in how they hide their illicit profits, police need sophisticated tools to detect and prevent criminals’ attempts at investment.

Since the launch in 2022 of INTERPOL’s Global Rapid Intervention of Payments (I-GRIP) stop-payment mechanism, countries have intercepted more than USD 200 million, stemming largely from cyber-enabled fraud. Around 200 experts at the interactive conference showcased operational successes, discussed their challenges and how INTERPOL’s policing tools had helped them identify and track criminal assets globally. These assets range from luxury yachts, cars and racehorses to cryptocurrency investments and real estate.

One investigation that was showcased revealed how an organized crime syndicate in Asia responsible for INTERPOL impersonation scams across Europe had been identified, its illicit money followed, and the organization disrupted. In another major success, a drug trafficking ring was taken down when police identified and traced its money laundering operations across Europe.

Experts at the two-day meeting learned how I-GRIP helps police submit and handle time-critical requests to trace, intercept or freeze illegal proceeds of crime across borders. Designed to give an operational focus to the discussion on asset recovery, the FIRE event (19 and 20 September) at the INTERPOL headquarters brought law enforcement, financial intelligence, public policy and judicial officials as well as industry and academia under one roof to find ways to overcome challenges faced in asset recovery globally.

Through thematic panel discussions and real-life case studies, specialists with a diverse range of expertise, approaches and experience devised and examined effective ways to address contemporary financial crime threats and support law enforcement in detecting and disrupting criminal asset flows.

The FATF-INTERPOL alliance

Global challenges require global partnerships to achieve successful outcomes. FATF and INTERPOL have joined forces to address the threats posed by transnational crime by going after the lifeblood of criminal enterprise, namely the dirty money that funds crime. This partnership has also included the EGMONT Group of Financial Intelligence Units.

The FATF sets international standards to ensure national authorities can go after illicit funds linked to drug trafficking, human trafficking, cyber-enabled fraud, illicit arms trade, illegal wildlife trafficking, environmental crime and other serious crimes. In partnership with INTERPOL, FATF works with national authorities to ensure that asset recovery is a key pillar of countries’ approach to tackling money laundering, terrorist financing and the financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

INTERPOL’s asset recovery methods and tools allow officers in 195 countries to share information helping them to trace illegally obtained assets worldwide.

| CONSTRUCTION OF PARTS FOR WORLDS FIRST ENERGY ISLAND: NORTH SEA PORT SUPPORTS ENERGY TRANSITION IN BELGIUM

Princess Elisabeth Island will be an energy hub 45 km off the Belgian coast connecting new wind farms and additional interconnectors (to the UK and Denmark) to Belgium’s onshore power grid. Obtaining the permit is a key condition for building the world’s first artificial energy island in the North Sea. North Sea Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne has approved the relevant environmental permit. In the meantime, Elia is putting the final touches on a nature-inclusive design for the island that will be submitted later this year. Construction will take around two years (March 2024 to August 2026).

Preparing the worksite in Vlissingen

A consortium comprising Belgian marine construction companies DEME and Jan De Nul has already started preparing the site in Vlissingen where it will build the caissons. That are the concrete foundations each of which is approximately 60 m long, 30 m wide and 30 m high. In late June 2023, an environmental permit was granted for the construction on the premises of Verbrugge Zeeland Terminals at Bijleveldhaven On this location in North Sea Port the 23 concrete caissons () will be built, launched, stored and, in the summers of 2024 and 2025, towed to the offshore location and immersed. Afterwards the island will be sand fill reclaimed and prepared for the construction of the high-voltage electrical infrastructure.

Nature-inclusive design promotes marine biodiversity

For months now Elia has been working with experts from public and private institutions, universities and non-governmental organisations to optimally integrate the energy island’s infrastructure into the marine environment. In opting for a nature-inclusive design, the island’s potential for marine biodiversity has been fully exploited. Based on this research, specific measures will be formulated that will then be submitted later this year and ultimately integrated into the island’s design.

Princess Elisabeth Island

Princess Elisabeth Island will be the first artificial energy island in the world to combine both direct current (HVDC) and alternating current (HVAC). The high-voltage infrastructure on the island will bundle together the export cables from the wind farms in the new Princess Elisabeth Zone while also serving as a hub for future interconnectors with the United Kingdom (Nautilus) and Denmark (TritonLink). Not only will they handle power exchanges between countries, but they will also be connected to new offshore wind farms in the North Sea that will eventually supply Belgium with large quantities of renewable energy.

Located some 45 km off the coast and covering 6 hectares (12 football fields), in the middle of the Princess Elisabeth Zone, Princess Elisabeth Island will be built on concrete caissons filled with sand. The island will house almost exclusively transmission infrastructure used to connect new wind farms (up to 3.5 GW) as well as future interconnectors. There will also be a small harbour for maintenance crews and a helideck. Some 300 km of alternating current cables (HVAC) and 60 km of direct current cables (HVDC) will be installed around the island to connect all future offshore facilities to the Belgian high-voltage grid.

| DANISH MULTINATIONAL ENERGY COMPANY ØRSTED ENTERS ITS FIRST UK SOLAR PROJECT

Generating clean, renewable electricity to power up to 200,000 homes

Ørsted has entered its first solar project in the UK. One Earth Solar Farm is a proposed 740 MW solar farm with associated battery storage, that will primarily be located in Nottinghamshire near the border of Lincolnshire and is being co-developed with PS Renewables.

Once operational, the 740 MW solar farm will generate enough clean, renewable electricity to power up to 200,000 homes, making it one of the largest solar farms in the country. Subject to local and stakeholder consultation, which will begin later this month as part of the process for nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIP), a development consent order (DCO) submission is planned for 2025.

Ørsted is taking a phased ownership in the project with the achievement of key milestones. PS Renewables and Ørsted are targeting a commercial operation date for the One Earth Solar Farm before 2030. The renewable electricity produced by the solar farm has several potential routes to market including contracts for difference and corporate power purchase agreements.

The project will contribute to Ørsted’s global ambition of reaching 17.5 GW of onshore capacity by 2030. Ørsted currently has over 5.7 GW of onshore renewables in operation, under construction or consented across the United States and Europe. Solar energy is crucial to diversifying and balancing energy generation and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. The UK government has set a clear target to increase solar capacity by nearly fivefold to 70 GW by 2035 as part of wider plans to power up Britain with cleaner, cheaper and more secure energy sources.

| PUTIN REGIME DECLARED ‘DE FACTO DICTATORSHIP’

The Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) has passed a resolution that denounced Russia as a dictatorship and urged the world to reject Vladimir Putin’s claim to the presidency after 2024, when his current term expires.

The assembly’s press service said that PACE also asked its member states to cut off all ties with Putin, “except for humanitarian contact and in the pursuit of peace.”

The parliamentarians stated that “the Russian Federation has become a de facto dictatorship” due to “the overwhelming power of the president” who has been in office for a very long time without any “checks and balances” such as “a strong parliament, an independent judiciary, free media, and a vibrant civil society.”

Putin has been ruling Russia as president or prime minister since 2000. In July 2020, he changed the Russian Constitution to allow him to stay in power until 2036.

The resolution said that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine showed that dictatorships “pose a threat to the international peace and security and to the sovereignty and independence of their neighbors.”

The assembly also repeated its call for an international court “to hold the Russian leadership, including Putin,” accountable for their crimes in Ukraine.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba praised the resolution on social platform X (formerly Twitter). He said that “crimes inside and outside the country” are the result of “over 20 years of unconstitutional one-man rule.”

Lastly, the assembly repeated its call for an international court “to hold the Russian leadership, including Putin,” accountable for their crimes in Ukraine, starting with the unlawful annexation of Crimea, the war in Donbas and the shooting down of flight MH17.

On 12 October, PACE also acknowledged the Holodomor or man-made famine that convulsed the Soviet republic of Ukraine from 1932 to 1933 as a genocide of the Ukrainian people and asked all member states to do the same.

| U-BOAT WORX UNVEILS THE ALL-NEW SUPER SUB

The Super Sub boasts an impressive 100 kW of thrust, enabling it to reach speeds of up to 10 knots. It can smoothly ascend and descend at inclines of up to 45 degrees while executing rapid banking turns, ensuring agile and swift underwater maneuverability.“The Super Sub’s speed of 10 knots is 3-4 knots faster than the top cruising speed of a bottlenose dolphin and 7 knots faster than the average submersible,” explained Roy Heijdra, Marketing Manager at U-Boat Worx. “Owners can glide behind a group of sea turtles, cruise alongside a school of sharks, dive and turn with a pod of dolphins, or swiftly navigate through the undercurrents with a powerful barracuda. The Super Sub is more than a ticket to an underwater theater; it’s a backstage VIP pass that immerses guests in the heart of the action.”

The SHARC Controller ensures that the hydrofoils operate in unison with the powerful thruster systems, guaranteeing guests the most thrilling ride. The hydrofoils on the back of the submarine allow it to direct the thrust flow more effectively, enabling sharp turns and banking maneuvers. The Super Subalso features an auto-heading system. When activated, the submersible will automatically maintainits current heading, whether following a course

Safety is top priorityLike every other U-Boat Worx masterpiece, the DNV-certified Super Subis equipped with state-of-the-art safety systems. For example, the ‘maximum depth protection’ feature prevents the pilot from descending beyond the submarine’s maximum operating depth. If the submersible ever goes too deep, this safety feature will automatically raise the submersible until it is back within its certified depth.The Safety Buoy is a distinctive feature of U-Boat Worx submersibles. When released, it marks the submarine’s position on the surface. A large drop weight can be manually released from within the vessel to increase buoyancy and assist in returning to the surface in case of an emergency. Additionally, each submarine, including the Super Sub, is equipped with a minimum of 96 hours of life support.or approaching an object of interest. This function is part of the intelligent pilot assistance features.