Royal Navy to equip vessels for $170.5 million with decoy launcher Ancilia

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a £135 million (US$170.5 million) contract to purchase the trainable decoy launcher Ancilia for the Royal Navy. The purchase will attempt to increase surface ship defensive capabilities and protect Royal Navy vessels against modern anti-ship threats, such as those recently coming from the Houthis in the Red Sea, as stated by the MoD.

Ancilia, first officially launched in September, is a trainable decoy launcher that, according to its manufacturers, allows quick reactions to incoming threats without needing to manoeuvre the vessel itself. The launcher can also configure the firing of multiple decoy types such as chaff, flares and ‘corner reflector’ rounds in varying positions.

Two subsidiaries of the UK-based technology company Cohort plc will manufacture the flexible countermeasure system in partnership. SEA has supplied the Royal Navy with torpedo launchers and countermeasure capabilities in the past, while Chess Dynamics has designed and developed the trainable base for Ancilia.

The contract was selected by the MoD to provide Electronic Warfare Countermeasures Increment 1a (EWCM 1a) as part of the Maritime Electronic Warfare Programme (MEWP). The 20-year programme has been aimed at updating surface ship electronic surveillance, countermeasures, and electronic warfare command and control capabilities.