As HMS Richmond prepares to join the UK Carrier Strike Group deployment, she has been equipped with a significant communications upgrade, enhancing her ability to share combat data at speed. Richmond is the first Type 23 to receive the integrated Link 16 Crypto Modernised system. This upgrade enables more secure and faster tactical data sharing| Navy Lookout - Independent Royal Navy news and analysis
The Fleet Air Arm’s Wildcat helicopters have achieved Initial Operating Capability (IOC) with the Sea Venom missile, bringing a modern long-range strike option into front-line service. The weapon can now be carried on global deployments, restoring a capability absent since the retirement of Sea Skua in 2017. Sea Venom has been developed under the Future […] The post Initial Operating Capability declared for Royal Navy Sea Venom anti-ship missile first appeared on Navy Lookout.| Navy Lookout
The Royal Navy has successfully test-fired the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) for the first time, marking a significant step forward in recovering its ability to strike ships and land targets at long range. Type 23 frigate, HMS Somerset, launched the missile during Exercise AEGIR 25 at the Andøya Test Centre in northern Norway in early| Navy Lookout - Independent Royal Navy news and analysis
In development since 2018, the Kingfisher munition is a novel and low-cost solution for warships developed by BAE Systems to counter underwater threats, particularly proliferating UUVs. Here we look at this weapon in detail and consider its potential selection by the Royal Navy. Background Kingfisher is a naval gun-launched modular carrier system. This allows a| Navy Lookout - Independent Royal Navy news and analysis
The RN has issued a Request for Information to industry to support exercise Atlantic Thunder 26, which will test anti-ship weapons and uncrewed underwater systems. AT26 will take place in waters off the QinetiQ Hebrides range in North West Scotland between 11–22 May 2026. The event is described as a “multi-domain exercise designed to validate| Navy Lookout - Independent Royal Navy news and analysis
