Potent ship killers, just the threat of mines can deter an enemy from sending his surface ships or submarines into an area.
Mines are difficult to locate and sweep.
Ship-counts can be set in the mine to allow a specific number of ships to pass before the mine fires. Some mines are bottom mines, placed on the seafloor, while others are moored mines suspended in the water with part of the mine serving as an anchor. Today's mines are designed for deployment against many different classes or types of ships to achieve a variety of results. However, to meet the challenges of the missions that they may be called upon to perform, mines are becoming increasingly complex. Moreover, the number of these mission is so large that no one mine can serve all purposes.