The new UUV Talisman L is a much smaller system that retains the core technologies of the Talisman M. The ‘L’ stands for littoral and indicates the operational basis of the vehicle which ways 50kg and is two man portable. ‘The way the threat is evolving is towards shallow water. We’ve operated Talisman M in depths of two metres. Talisman L will be capable in operating in depths of around one metre,’ he says. For BAE Systems it is also about the commonality of the developing Talisman family. The new UUV uses the same system architecture as the existing Talisman M and a large number of the components are also the same. ‘Its about common technology,’ Tonge states, ‘common navigation, common communications, common command and control.’ BAE expects the Talisman L to be able to operate from the Talisman M platform extending both range and capability. The Talisman M would be able to carry two of the smaller Talisman L systems plus four Archerfish mine destruction munitions in the mine counter measures (MCM) role. The Talisman L has a new thruster configuration that will be retrofitted to the Talisman M. The new thruster configuration will give the UUVs greater stability and also give the vehicles a ‘sprint’ capability for Talisman L that means speeds of up to 5 knots.