Cohort subsidiary Systems Engineering and Assessment (SEA) has been awarded a GBP 135 million (EUR 157.3 million) contract by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to provide a trainable decoy launcher to improve the defensive capabilities of Royal Navy surface ships, the company announced on 26 March 2024.
The MoD has selected SEA’s Ancilia system for the requirement, known as Electronic Warfare Countermeasures Increment 1a (EWCM 1a). Ancilia delivers effective and rapid protection against modern anti-ship threats such as ballistic missiles as well as other sophisticated systems and tactics. It will be installed across a range of the Royal Navy’s surface ships.
The design of the Ancilia system, which leverages SEA’s knowledge of existing systems in service with the Royal Navy, is built on technology developed collaboratively by SEA and fellow Cohort subsidiary Chess Dynamics.
“The Ancilia technology is a step-change from traditional fixed solutions, as its trainable nature removes the need to manoeuvre the vessel to counter incoming threats,” Cohort noted in a press release. “Its relatively small size and weight enables rapid installation on a wide range of maritime platforms, and its capability to configure the firing of multiple decoy types in varying positions provides the Royal Navy with a truly flexible countermeasures solution.”
The Royal Navy Ancilia contract is comfortably Cohort’s largest ever single order and will take its orderbook to more than GBP 500 million.
Andy Thomis, Cohort’s chief executive, said of the win, “We are delighted that Cohort’s Ancilia system has been selected to provide this vitally important capability. It represents a strong vote of confidence in our operating businesses SEA and Chess, and in the group as a whole.
“The conflict in Ukraine, and investment by some countries in advanced missile technology, has underlined the importance of defence against sophisticated anti-ship threats,” Thomis added. “Ancilia has generated considerable interest from overseas customers, and this contract award will boost its visibility still further. We estimate that our addressable market for systems of this kind in the coming years is at least GBP 250 million.”
