Royal Navy launches strike drone from a ship for the first time
The Royal Navy fired a British-built Nyan one-way effector from the experimentation vessel XV Patrick Blackett off England's south coast.
The Royal Navy has launched a strike-capable one-way effector drone from a ship at sea for the first time, firing the British-built Nyan from the experimentation vessel XV Patrick Blackett off the south coast of England. The trials took place last month under Exercise Neptune Reach, part of the tri-service Project Vantage focused on maritime attack drones.
The pre-programmed autonomous aircraft was fired from a deck launcher able to accelerate one-way effectors to up to 55 metres a second. Nyan, developed by Callen-Lenz, a BAE Systems company, has a 2.9-metre wingspan and is designed for precision strike; more than 1,000 units have been produced and the system is already proven on land, including with the British Army in Estonia.
Officials framed the trials as a step toward a hybrid fleet combining crewed and uncrewed systems, backed by a Defence Investment Plan committing over GBP 5bn to drones and autonomous systems. Further trials could follow aboard the carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth.
Source: UK Defence Journal (via Maasmond Maritime press clippings).
