At Eurosatory in Paris last month Spetstechnoexport unveiled the SIRENA trimaran unmanned surface vessel (USV), developed by the Center for Innovative Technology Programmes.
Specifically designed for complex EW missions in contested maritime and littoral environments, the USV operates a powerful multi-band jamming system in the 300-6000MHz range, facilitating disruption of communications, GNSS navigation signals and UAV control channels simultaneously. This Scorpion V5 EW system is particularly effective against Shahed-type drones at ranges of up to 30km, knowledgeable observers report.
With a payload of up to 300kg and a maximum speed of around 90km/h, SIRENA also packs kinetic punch in the form of a SeaDRAGON launcher firing two AIM-9M Sidewinder or R73 SAMs. The missiles have an effective range of 15km and are controlled via an integrated Starlink antenna. The USV also mounts a Pelican radar. Executing combat missions in remote-controlled, semi-autonomous or fully autonomous modes, the USV can operate for up to 24 hours and patrol areas up to 800km from its control station in a beyond-line-of-sight configuration, remaining in standby mode for up to 10 days then remaining actively operational for up to 100 hours.
DA Comment
Yet another example of innovation spurred by combat experience, the SIRENA reinforces the success Ukraine has had in the maritime domain with unmanned systems, holding major Russian surface combatants at bay and operationally useless rather than risk being crippled or destroyed. The integration of disparate home-grown system components into a cohesive weapons platform merely highlights the phenomenal growth speed of Ukraine’s sovereign defence industry.
Headline image shows production SIRENAs from a video produced by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
