Motherlode: The new AI tool keeping Royal Navy helicopters in the air

A new artificial intelligence (AI) tool is keeping Royal Navy helicopters flying by modernising maintenance and support.

Engineers at RNAS Yeovilton are using Motherlode, which makes the most of AI to make sure maintenance work is both smarter and more efficient.

Lieutenant Commander Oli Burrows of 1710 Naval Air Squadron, a scientific and engineering support unit, told Forces News it allows the Royal Navy to "understand on a… really grand scale how we maintain our aircraft".

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He said it could also allow the user to focus on a specific issue relating to a specific aircraft.

"We record lots of information to do with the aircraft and how we maintain it," he said.

"Motherlode effectively takes that information, applies some really clever data processing calculations and then it displays that data in a really easy-to-use format."

The overall goal is to increase aircraft availability, which is partly done by predicting when parts may become faulty so engineers are ready to replace them.

Chief Petty Officer Andrew Ireson, a frontline Wildcat engineer, told Forces News they can also use Motherlode to see how an aircraft part has performed - above, in line with or below expectations.

"The tool will allow us to conduct that analysis until the component fails," he said.

"If a tail rotor blade fails after 100 flying hours, for example, we can compare that on the tool to see if that is as expected, if it's succeeded our expectations or if it's not reached our expectations in terms of reliability."

He said personnel can then talk to manufacturers to see if a modification might be required to improve performance.

Defence Procurement Minister James Cartlidge visited RNAS Yeovilton to see how the AI tool works.

He told Forces News: "You might argue these sorts of things perhaps don't get the attention they should.

"We often, when we talk about the next new thing we're going to buy or the more glamorous side of this, the big shiny platforms.

"Actually, maintenance support, as anyone who serves in the Armed Forces knows, is absolutely critical."

Motherlode is expected to be rolled out for all Royal Navy helicopter maintenance by the end of the year.