Victor 6000
French ROV reaching 6,000 m depth since 1999.
Victor 6000 is a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) for deep-sea work, owned and run by the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea (IFREMER). It has been in operation since 1999 and can descend to 6,000 meters. The vehicle weighs 4.6 tonnes and measures 3.07 meters long, 2.77 meters high, and 2.14 meters wide. It is linked to its support ship by an 8.5-kilometer cable that supplies power and control, though it can also function on its own for up to 100 hours.
In 2002, Victor 6000 took part in the PHARE oceanographic campaign aboard an IFREMER research vessel, and the expedition was covered in a documentary. Since 2012, the deep-sea creatures displayed in the Abyss Box at Oceanopolis aquarium in Brest have been collected by this ROV. During a November 2020 scientific mission, it helped locate a SNCASE Aquilon jet fighter-bomber that had been missing since 1960, found at 2,400 meters depth south of Porquerolles, France. In 2023, Victor 6000 and the ship Atalante were deployed in the search for the missing Titan submersible.
- Weight
- 4.6 t
- Length
- 3.07 m
- Height
- 2.77 m
- Width
- 2.14 m
- Maximum depth
- 6,000 m
- Cable length
- 8.5 km
- Autonomous operation
- 100 hours
Lore & Background
Victor 6000 is a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) that weighs 4.6 t and measures 3.07 m long, 2.77 m high, and 2.14 m wide. It is capable of reaching depths of 6,000 m. Victor 6000 is controlled and powered via a 8.5 km cable that connects it to its host ship, but can operate autonomously for 100 hours.
From 30 April to 3 June 2002, Victor 6000, aboard the IFREMER research ship, participated in the PHARE (Peuplements hydrothermaux, leurs associations et relations avec l'environnement) oceanographic campaign and featured in a documentary about the expedition. The fauna on display in the Abyss Box pressurised deep sea tank at Oceanopolis aquarium in Brest since 2012 were collected by Victor 6000.
During a scientific expedition with the IFREMER research ship in November 2020, Victor 6000 was used to discover a SNCASE Aquilon jet fighter-bomber, missing since 1960, at a depth of 2400 m to the south of Porquerolles, France. In 2023, Victor 6000 and Atalante were used in a rescue attempt in the search for the Titan submersible.
Reader's Guide
Victor 6000 has been in service since 1999, operated by IFREMER for deep-sea research and exploration. Its ability to reach depths of 6,000 m makes it a significant tool for oceanographic campaigns, such as the PHARE expedition in 2002, which studied hydrothermal vent communities. The ROV also contributed to the collection of deep-sea fauna for the Abyss Box at Oceanopolis aquarium, allowing public display of organisms from extreme depths. In 2020, Victor 6000 located a missing SNCASE Aquilon jet fighter-bomber at 2,400 m depth, demonstrating its utility in underwater archaeology and search operations. Its involvement in the 2023 search for the Titan submersible highlights its role in emergency response. The ROV's design, with an 8.5 km tether and 100-hour autonomous capability, balances remote control with extended mission flexibility.
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