WA mine countermeasures vessel or MCMV is a type of naval ship designed for the location of and destruction of naval mines which combines the role of a minesweeper and minehunter in one hull. The term MCMV is also applied collectively to minehunters and minesweepers.
WA minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.
WA danlayer was a type of vessel assigned to minesweeping flotillas during and immediately after World War II. They were usually small trawlers, fitted for the purpose of laying dans. A dan is a marker buoy which consists of a long pole moored to the seabed and fitted to float vertically, usually with a coded flag at the top.
WMinesweeper flotillas of the Kriegsmarine were administrative units which grouped German minesweepers together. There were three types of minesweeper flotillas: standard minesweepers, auxiliary minesweepers, and "mine barrage" vessels. Flotilla commanders operated from a shore office, and were usually commanded by an officer ranked as a Korvettenkapitän. All minesweeper flotillas were under the command of the Führer der Minensuchboote which, by 1940, had been divided into three separate offices for activities in the North Sea, Baltic Sea, and off the coast of France.
WAn Oropesa is a streamlined towed body used in the process of minesweeping. The role of the Oropesa is to keep the towed sweep at a determined depth and position from the sweeping ship. Oropesa are standard devices used on Avenger-class mine countermeasures ships.
WThe paravane, a form of towed underwater "glider" with a warhead that was used in anti-submarine warfare, was developed from 1914–16 by Commander Usborne and Lieutenant C. Dennistoun Burney, funded by Sir George White, founder of the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It was used against naval mines and submarines.
WRD 36 was a minesweeper built for the Regia Marina in 1919 and later transferred to the Regia Guardia di Finanza. She saw action during World War II and, for the action that led to her sinking, she became one of the three Italian warships to be awarded the Gold Medal of Military Valor "to the flag".
WYangyang-class minesweeper is a ship class of minesweepers currently in service on the Republic of Korea Navy.