Contenu
The core challenge for navies lies in acquiring new capabilities that strengthen near-field defence, especially against drones that may suddenly appear within a ship’s immediate perimeter.
Numerous requirements have been set out by the French Navy and the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA), in this regard. Solutions must be fully compatible with the combat management system (CMS), easy to integrate and operate and designed to be modular and scalable, allowing sensors or effectors to be added through a plug-and-play approach. They must also perform across multiple environments, respond to diverse threats, and support a variety of missions without requiring heavy or time-consuming reconfiguration. They must be operable by just a few users after short training sessions and feature a user-friendly human-machine interface (HMI). All of this must be deployed at a controlled cost while taking up as little space as possible!
Tailored solutions
Naval Group’s response takes all of these aspects into account, offering solutions tailored for all classes of surface vessels, regardless of their size or life cycle stage, whether newly built or undergoing maintenance.
More specifically, Naval Group’s proposal is based on a sea-proven, open-architecture central system already deployed onboard France’s defence and intervention frigates (FDIs) and replenishment vessels (BRFs). Developed using an agile approach and tested continuously with operators, this system core has benefited from real-time feedback and incremental improvements that meet naval forces’ operational needs.
The system core uses onboard platform sensors, such as the navigation radar and optronic cameras, to monitor the vessel’s immediate surroundings and more easily identify threats. To neutralise threats, the system can rely on non-lethal measures like jamming or on more offensive tools such as missiles or the multipurpose and modular launching system (MPLS).
A full near-field protection
Particularly suited to near-field warfare, this multipurpose and modular launching system can carry various types of weapons. Compact and lightweight, it remains stable, accurate and fast in all sea conditions. The MPLS can be reloaded and reconfigured during a mission and can operate autonomously or be integrated into the ship’s combat system. The result is a surface ship equipped with the full near-field protection required to counter today’s threats. Capable of detecting small and medium-sized aerial and surface drones (USVs and UAVs), it can also neutralise drones of all sizes.
A real technological turning point, Naval Group’s solution also offers the opportunity to test the integration of high-powered weapons such as high-power electromagnetic (HPEM) systems, next-generation jammers capable of remotely disrupting or neutralising drone electronic systems, or even lasers.
