Canada Navy Canada Surface Combatant (CSC) Program

[oldcpu]

Torpedo Defence System for the River Class: Sea Sensor & Expendable Acoustic Countermeasures. Sea Spider ???

Note the Canadian government info graphic on the River Class Destroyer lists the "Towed Torpedo Countermeasures - Ultra Electronics SEA SENTOR S21700" and it does not state the Atlas Elektronik "Sea Spider" which some earlier articles that speculated on the Canadian Surface Combatant suggested (more on that in the second half of this post).

Further to this, I note an article in Defence News dated 24-September, which also notes no mention in the infographic of 'Sea Spider" for the River Class destroyer, and further also states no Navy to date has procured the Sea Spider.

European navies chase the white whale of torpedo-busting torpedoes

Germany and the Netherlands are banking on a European Union project to field a workable defensive system for surface ships by 2030.

www.defensenews.com

Hence while it is possible Sea Spider is still being considered for the Canadian Navy River Class destroyer, it is not apparent to me that this is the case. Rather at present I suspect the opposite (ie no procurement of Sea Spider) is more likely.

 

[oldcpu]

"Additionally, the company's MK20 and MK46 electro-optical (EO) sighting systems are the standard EO narrow field-of-view system for capital ships worldwide. L3Harris provides unmatched imaging from our photonic masts in support of U.S. and Allied Nations. The company leverages its strengths of inherent reliability at the device, component and system level, and coordinates and collaborates throughout the corporation to ensure its products leverage L3Harris' collective knowledge on maritime environments."

... So my updated speculation is this could also be what is being proposed for the River Class destroyer.

I also read in a December 2022 article in Military Aerospace.com that the Mk 20 EOSS purported is utilized with the 5" (127mm) guns aboard the USNavy Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, the Ticoneroga class destroyers, and Coast Guard Offsore Patrol cutter. My understanding is the MK 20 EOSS has technology improvements over the MK-46 OSS.

Further to this speculation, I note an old WarZone article on the Mk20 EOSS which provides more information on its functionality.

U.S. Warships Have This Seldom Discussed But Very Powerful Optical Targeting System

It's easy to overlook the WALL-E-looking turret atop these ships, but it provides key targeting and situational awareness information to the crew.

www.twz.com

As to whether Lockheed Martin/BAE is considering this piece of L3 Harris kit for the River Class Destroyer is pure speculation by myself.

 

[oldcpu]

3. Lockheed Martin (LM)-Mk 53 Mod 1 Nulka Electronic Warfare Suite System & Anti-Ship Missile (ASM) launchers through FMS/Aegis.

With regards to the Nulka, here is a link to the Lockheed Martin advertising brochure (PDF):

https://www.lockheedmartin.com/content/dam/lockheed-martin/rms/documents/electronic-warfare/Nulka-Brochure.pdf

Further to that brochure one can read a defense.info article where purported the Nulka has been used in actual combat

Updating the Nulka Anti-Ship Defense System | Defense.info

Almost a decade before an Argentinian Exocet missile speared into the side of British warship HMS Sheffield during the Falklands War, Australian defence scientists had figured there had to be something better than guns, missiles, and chaff to protect ships against sea-skimming missiles. The May...

defense.info

That article also provides a bit more specific information on functionality details that are not as clear in the advertising brochure. It speculates on DRFM, RGPO and VGPO functions possibly being incorporated in the Nulka (but obviously as to whether RGPO/VGPO included is the case, is speculation).

 

[oldcpu]

I have not read any unclassified sources claiming Raven being interfaced to Aegis in the past. If one looks at the info graphic sketch, the antenna for the Raven, which could be observed in earlier speculative sketches of the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC), are not observable in the most recent Canadian Department of Defence sketches. One could speculate that means ..... (3) Raven ECM is not included as part of the River Class destroyer procurement .....

Further to this, I note:

https://www.jedonline.com/2024/10/22/canada-looks-to-us-navy-for-non-developmental-ew-for-csc/

That is an article from Jedonline about the Electronic Warfare system anticipated to be installed in the River Class destroyer.

The article notes that:

"one consequence of the modified acquisition approach is the original bespoke EW solution has been dropped at least from the first three ships. Instead Lockheed Martin's AN/SLQ-32(V)6 RESM system - introduced to the US Navy under SEWIP Block 2 and already integrated with Aegis - is to be acquired through Foreign military sales(FMS).

In addition, Raven onboard EA system and the NGDS decoy launcher have been shelved from the program. Instead the River-class ships will receive an off-board EA capability through the integration of the BAE Systems Nukla active missile decoy system (again supplied through FMS).