Cutting-edge Royal Navy missiles – recently used to shoot down
multiple hostile drones in the Red Sea – will receive significant
enhancements through an upgrade programme supporting hundreds of
UK jobs.
Crucial to defend sailors, surface fleet and air threats,
the Sea Viper Air Defence system will be upgraded with
updated missiles featuring a new warhead and software update
that will enable it to defeat ballistic missile threats. The
system will protect the UK’s Carrier Strike group and can
track, target and destroy a variety of air threats over
70 miles away.
Worth £405 million, the contracts will make Sea Viper the most
capable naval air defence system ever developed for the Royal
Navy, investing in vital capability used in recent weeks to
protect one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes from multiple
drone attacks.
The missile upgrades comprise three contracts awarded
to MBDA UK, including two to significantly enhance the Sea Viper
capability on board Type 45 warships, and a third to cover
enhanced in-service support and availability of the system for
the next five years.
By further investing in our world-leading defence industry, the
contracts will also support the Prime Minister’s priority to grow
the economy by sustaining 350 UK jobs, including highly skilled
technology roles in Stevenage, Cowes, Bristol &
Bolton.
The work will include employees from MBDA across the UK, France
and Italy working alongside colleagues from BAE
Systems.
Defence Secretary
said:
As the situation in the Middle East worsens, it is vital that we
adapt to keep the UK, our allies and partners safe. Sea
Viper has been at the forefront of this, being the Navy’s weapon
of choice in the first shooting down of an aerial threat in more
than 30 years.
Our strong and enduring relationship with British industry has
ensured we can deploy the latest technological capabilities
wherever they are required while supporting hundreds of jobs
across the country and bolstering UK prosperity.
The Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyers are among the most advanced
in the fleet and carry out a range of activity, including defence
from air attack, counter-piracy operations and providing
humanitarian aid.
Defence Secretary this week visited HMS Diamond
in the Red Sea, where it recently used Sea
Viper missiles to shoot down
multiple attack drones, as part of the
US-led international taskforce Operation
Prosperity Guardian.
Alongside HMS Diamond, the taskforce currently includes
three US destroyers, and a French warship is also in the region.
All are currently operating in the Southern Red Sea
with the multinational partnership focusing on protecting freedom
of navigation, international trade and human life by
countering illicit non-state actors in international
waters.
Rear Admiral Anthony Rimington, Director Force Generation
said:
A cutting-edge weapon system, Sea Viper continues to
provide the Royal Navy with impressive lethality. Sea Viper
Evolution further enhances this capability against the more
complex and evolving threats and strengthens our cooperation and
interoperability with key partners.
The Sea Viper enhancements aim to deliver Ballistic Missile
Defence Capability to counter more complex threats,
while providing an opportunity for further upgrades and
increased capability to be taken forward into future systems.
The initial stage of the contract will upgrade the
Royal Navy’s existing Aster 30 missiles to Aster 30 Block 1,
which will enable defence against anti-ship ballistic
missile threats, and will see modifications to the
fleet’s Multi-Function Radar (Sampson), Command and Control
system and Combat Management System.
The subsequent stage of the Sea Viper evolution will
evaluate the introduction of the new Aster 30 Block 1NT missile.
Currently under development with France and Italy, it
features a new seeker that would even further enhance the
ballistic missile defence capabilities of the UK’s Type 45
destroyers.
Vice Admiral Paul Marshall, Director General Ships at
Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), the procurement arm of
the UK MOD, said:
In a rapidly changing defence environment, I’m proud to see our
teams work collaboratively with industry colleagues to
support highly-skilled jobs and ensure those operating
the UK Type 45 fleet have the edge over their adversaries now and
in the future.
Chris Allam, Managing Director of MBDA UK,
said:
These contracts will make Sea Viper the most capable naval air
defence system ever developed for the Royal Navy in
our 60-year history as the Navy’s primary air defence
system supplier.
They will also see the UK further enhance the co-operation with
France and Italy through MBDA by joining the Aster 30 Block 1
programme, giving the UK the ability to defeat anti-ship
ballistic missiles.
The enhancements to the fleet of Type 45 destroyers are expected
to reach full operational capability by Autumn 2032.
