U.S. Navy and Defense Innovation Unit Seek Containerized Electronic-Warfare Systems for Surface Vessels

The Defense Innovation Unit and the Navy launched a competition seeking containerized threat-radar simulators, electronic-attack systems, and surveillance payloads for manned and unmanned surface vessels. The solicitation, posted Thursday, seeks open-system architectures and software-defined capabilities in three areas: threat radar simulators, active electronic attack, and passive electronic surveillance.

The Defense Innovation Unit is partnering with the Navy’s Rapid Capabilities Office and Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific on the effort.

"A critical component of this modernization effort is the deployment of autonomous and containerized payloads to generate combat power at speed and scale," the solicitation stated. " Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle outlined the broader push on April 20 at the Sea Air Space exposition.

"If it fits in a container, I want it and I should be able to fight anywhere in the world with it across many, many platforms. At speed. At scale," he said. The Navy had already launched the MUSV Marketplace in March to align with Caudle’s containerization plans.

The new competition builds on that step by seeking prototypes that can integrate across platforms. The unmanned surface vessel Ranger and the unmanned surface vessel Mariner demonstrated related operations during a September 7, 2023, photo exercise as part of Integrated Battle Problem 23.2 while transiting the Pacific Ocean.