Leonardo DRS, Inc. has completed its first open-water demonstrations of a new maritime Mission Equipment Package (MEP). This MEP will provide counter-uncrewed aerial system (C-UAS) for naval forces.
The MEP is derived from Leonardo DRS’s proven land-based short-range air defense and C-UAS technologies. The system aims to deliver remote protection for ships against aerial and surface threats. It aims to address the U.S. Navy’s growing interest in autonomous platforms for fleet defense.
Realistic Sea Trials Demonstrate Core Capabilities
The initial demonstrations took place under realistic open-water conditions. The MEP showcased its ability to detect, identify, and track UAS threats. The trial configuration featured a suite of integrated sensors and command-and-control systems. It also included the BlackLab passive radio frequency (RF) detection system. Moreover, it features the STAG electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) gimbal with thermal imaging. It comes with a data management system running the company’s operating software.
Read more: Patria to Supply Composite Assemblies for Airbus A350F Cargo Hold
By fusing data from RF and optical inputs, the AI-driven system supports rapid target recognition. This enhances situational awareness for operators.
Flexible, Modular, and Platform-Agnostic Design
The maritime MEP’s modular, platform-agnostic architecture is built on an open systems approach (MOSA). This allows seamless integration of RF sensors, EO/IR systems and 4G/5G-enabled electronic capabilities. This flexibility ensures adaptability for evolving threat environments and diverse naval mission requirements.
Addressing Urgent Naval Security Needs
“The U.S. Navy faces the same evolving drone threats as our land forces. We recognize the urgency of delivering a reliable solution to protect the lives of sailors,” said Cari Ossenfort. Cari is the Senior Vice President and General Manager of Leonardo DRS Naval Electronics. “We are leveraging our expertise in ground-based counter-UAS and short-range air defense systems. This way, we have rapidly developed and demonstrated a maritime force protection capability. Therefore, sailors get full-spectrum situational awareness. It includes the tools to detect, track, and defeat threats at the tactical edge.”
Expanding Defense Integration Across Domains
Leonardo DRS emphasized that the development of this maritime C-UAS capability is part of its broader expertise in integrating systems across air, land, sea, and cyber domains. The company supports a range of mission areas, including force protection and computer networking. Additionally, it includes C5I (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Combat Systems, and Intelligence), and naval power and propulsion systems.
With this demonstration, Leonardo DRS moves a step closer to delivering operational maritime C-UAS solutions. These solutions will be deployed across a variety of U.S. Navy and allied autonomous surface platforms.
Javeria Sajid is an Aerospace Engineering student from NUST with a background in technology and a sharp focus on the global political landscape and defence innovation. She writes to make complex defence technologies understandable, and aspires to bridge journalism, policy, and engineering in her work.
