Apparently determined to wipe out all manners of illegalities in the Gulf of Guinea, the Nigerian Navy has commenced the use of Israeli-designed, UAE-built Falcon Eye mass surveillance system for purposes of maritime domain awareness (MDA) in the rich and vast maritime domain.
Speaking at the recent inauguration of the mass surveillance system, the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Raphael Osondu said the system would enable real time decision making regarding targets in the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and will help to control and direct naval patrol vessels to the target position.
He said the newly acquired technology is very vital to the development of the Nigerian economy, especially, as the economy of the country is dependent on maritime.
According to him, “this new technology has better features and most importantly, it covers our maritime environment up to the EZZ, and have also provided for the blind arcs which we experience in some parts of our territorial water with the Regional Maritime Awareness Capability (RMAC) system”.
“The Falcon Eye will aid the Nigerian Navy with a better and more accurate system to monitor and conduct activities in Nigerian Maritime Domain and her EEZ”, he added.
While explaining that the centre will further establish the credibility of Nigeria as a regional training hub for Maritime Domain Awareness systems, Admiral Osondu said this becomes necessary as the United States’ African Command (AFRICOM is making efforts to co-fund a regional maritime training centre in Lagos.
The waters off the coast of Nigeria are notorious for piracy, especially kidnappings and oil theft, and the technology is intended to help the country’s armed forces combat maritime crimes.
Rear Admiral Raphael Osondu told media that piracy is a persistent threat to Nigeria’s economy, and that countering it is a key priority for the military.
Falcon Eye’s six electro-optical stations provide for the monitoring of aircraft, vessels and offshore oil infrastructure. The system has a range of up to 35 nm from the coast, well beyond the 12 nm limit of Nigeria’s territorial seas.
The system will enable the navy to monitor all movements and prevent the commission of maritime crimes such as piracy, oil theft, vandalism offshore oil infrastructure and illegal aircraft movements within the Gulf of Guinea.Admiral Osondu added that the new system covers “the blind arcs which we experience in some parts of our territorial waters with the Regional Maritime Awareness Capability (RMAC) system.” RMAC is an American-sponsored coastal surveillance system using AIS and ground-based radar to track maritime traffic, and was deployed in the Gulf of Guinea in 2011.
“The Falcon Eye will aid the Nigerian Navy with a better and more accurate system to monitor and conduct activities in Nigerian Maritime Domain and her EEZ,” he added. The Nigerian Navy’s training centre for the system has already prepared some 70 personnel to operate Falcon Eye.
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