Rheinmetall Defence Australia has begun Australian assembly of the first Multi Ammunition Soft Kill (MASS) shipsets destined for installation onto Royal Australian Navy (RAN) vessels, Rheinmetall announced on 10 March 2025.
The MASS system is an ‘offboard’ countermeasure system to defeat incoming missile and asymmetric threats by providing a tailored soft-kill and screening effect. The system will initially be used to equip six RAN platforms and could potentially be fitted to much of the navy’s future fleet.
The countermeasures initiated by the system generate a decoy target, which the incoming missile then interprets to be a higher-value asset, ultimately causing it to veer off course. MASS launches these countermeasures autonomously, taking into account wind and the ship’s navigation data as well as information concerning the nature of the threat.
Nathan Poyner, managing director of Rheinmetall Defence Australia, was quoted as saying in a company press release, “This is the group’s single-biggest order ever for ship protection technology and could potentially grow to equip Australia’s entire fleet. … While the contract end date is 2027, Rheinmetall Defence Australia is responsible for the sustainment of these countermeasure units beyond that time.
“The MASS systems ordered by the Royal Australian Navy are assembled and tested at Rheinmetall Defence Australia’s centre of excellence for military vehicles [MILVEHCOE in Ipswich, Queensland],” Poyner noted. “This will result in new possibilities for expanding the group’s Australian supply chain. MASS offers potential partners in the Australian defence sector the chance to co-operate with Rheinmetall and the Royal Australian Navy in realising this important defensive capability.”
Pointing out that the Australian MASS contract has secured more than 30 new jobs at MILVEHCOE, Poyner said, “Our partnership with the Royal Australian Navy is a key element of our long-term investment in Australia’s Defence capability, and we are proud to be part of the Australian government’s work to develop a robust, sustainable, and globally competitive defence industry.”
