News
Cohort Group showcases latest innovations in underwater and surface defence technology at EURONAVAL
Across its specialist businesses, the Group will present technologies spanning underwater surveillance and threat detection, ship and fleet protection, secure communications, as well as target tracking and fire control. These support naval customers across increasingly complex surface and subsurface environments.
As navies respond to rapidly evolving and contested maritime environments, the ability to detect and understand emerging threats, securely share information and respond effectively is becoming increasingly important.
Located on stand E44, four of the Group’s subsidiaries - Chess Dynamics, EID, ELAC SONAR and SEA - will demonstrate their latest technologies and capabilities.
Andy Thomis, Chief Executive of Cohort Group, said:
“EURONAVAL brings together the European maritime defence sector at a time of increasing change, with the region facing growing threats in both the surface and underwater domains. In response, we’re seeing European nations increase defence spending, leveraging innovative technologies and initiatives to strengthen deterrence proactively.
“Cohort Group brings together specialist capabilities spanning surveillance and threat detection through to secure communications, fleet protection, tracking and fire control. These technologies play a crucial role in helping naval forces detect threats earlier, protect critical assets and respond effectively when necessary. EURONAVAL provides an important opportunity to showcase the latest innovations across the Group and how they can support the evolving requirements of navies across Europe and allied nations.”
Underwater domain: strengthening awareness and protection below the surface
Together, ELAC SONAR and SEA provide capabilities spanning sonar, persistent surveillance, anti-submarine warfare and countermeasures, helping naval forces build greater situational awareness, detect emerging threats and protect platforms above and below the surface.
ELAC SONAR will showcase:
- Sphere® - its integrated sonar solution, combining surveillance, mine and collision avoidance, underwater communication and measurement capabilities within a single integrated system while supporting scalability and interoperability. ELAC SONAR is delivering Sphere technology as part of its recent €140.7 million contract, in collaboration with Saab to deliver integrated sonar systems for the Polish Orka Submarine Programme
- Sphere® Surveillance Open Suite Sonar - its 360-degree surveillance system, which operates across two frequency bands and is developed for unmanned underwater and surface vehicles. The capability supports the growing use of unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) for defence and maritime surveillance missions.
- ENLITOR – the company’s persistent passive underwater surveillance system that acts as an ‘acoustical tripwire’, using a network of underwater detection nodes to continuously monitor activity and transmit acoustic data to shore for real-time processing and analysis.
- ERAZOR - a self-propelled mini-torpedo designed to neutralise unauthorised UUV intruders through a ‘mission kill’. The capability combines deployment from an unmanned aerial vehicle with autonomous detection, tracking, locating and engagement capabilities.
SEA will showcase:
- KraitSense – the company’s proven small-form-factor towed sonar designed to collect, analyse and exploit acoustic and maritime data for anti-submarine warfare (ASW), intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and maritime situational awareness (MSA). Its low size, weight and power (SWaP) design enables deployment across a range of static, crewed and uncrewed vessels. KraitSense incorporates SEA’s leading KraitArray technology, providing a lightweight and cost-effective alternative to traditional sonar solutions, with more than 70 KraitArrays currently in service worldwide.
- Ancilia – SEA’s trainable countermeasure system designed to support fleet survivability and operational effectiveness. The system combines threat detection, data exploitation and countermeasure deployment to support naval operations across surface and subsurface environments. The highly modular and flexible maritime countermeasures solution has been selected by the UK’s Ministry of Defence to provide Electronic Warfare Countermeasures Increment 1a (EWCM 1a) to the UK Royal Navy’s surface ships.
- Visitors to the stand will also be able to learn about SEA’s collaboration with Mind Foundry which combines artificial intelligence and machine learning with a flexible and proven ASW capability to enhance ASW situational awareness as well as the company’s partnership with Terma to develop advanced fleet-protection solutions.
Surface domain: securing information superiority and effective response
Across the surface domain, EID and Chess Dynamics provide technologies that help naval forces securely exchange information, build situational awareness and move from threat detection to effective response.
EID will showcase:
- Its latest naval C4I capabilities, including the ICCS7 and SEF, under the theme ‘Next-Gen Hybrid Navies: Securing Information Superiority Through Advanced Connectivity’ to showcase how secure communications, interoperability and advanced naval C4I solutions can support naval forces operating in increasingly connected and demanding environments. EID's solutions are designed to support secure communications, information exchange and interoperability across naval platforms and wider defence networks.
- ICCS7 – EID's award-winning Integrated Communications Control System, which provides an advanced, secure and resilient communications environment, integrating multiple domains and security classifications and meeting national and NATO requirements. EID is installing its C4I solution, including the ICCS7, on the Portuguese Navy’s NRP D. João II.
- EID’s experts will be on the stand to discuss its recent naval projects with the Portuguese Navy, as well as the company’s Federated Mission Networking (FMN) compliant capabilities including its Military Message Handling System (MMHS). EID's communication capabilities enable naval forces to exchange information securely across platforms, command structures and allied networks.
Chess Dynamics will showcase:
- SeaEagle FCRO (Fire Control Radar Optical) – its stabilised radar and electro-optical system designed to detect, track targets and provide precision control of naval guns against shore, surface and airborne threats. Combining advanced Ku-Band fire control radar with a thermal imager and daylight TV camera, the system provides 24-hour, long range target tracking and fire control, supporting naval operators responding to threats across the maritime environment.
- SeaEagle FCEO-D (Fire Control Electro-Optical Digital) – a fully digital, high-resolution precision fire control tracking director. The electro-optical surveillance system provides automatic detection and tracking capability to support situational awareness and provide real-time information to the Combat Management System (CMS) to direct effectors and accurately engage threats. The FCEO-D can also be used for non-tactical tasks including security, search and rescue, infrared search and track (IRST) as well as navigation and mine avoidance.
- Visitors to the stand will be able to hear more about Chess Dynamics’ maritime surveillance, tracking and fire control capabilities and its innovative Vision4ce advanced video tracking, image processing and AI algorithms which deliver real-time target identification, tracking and classification.
Alongside the technologies on display, SEA will be speaking in the EURONAVAL conference programme sharing insight into the evolving requirements shaping naval operations and maritime defence:
- Seabed Workshop featuring Mark Lawther from SEA, Tuesday 03 November, 13:45 – 14:30]
