Dutch Defence Ministry orders containerised anti-submarine warfare systems

Published Jul 29, 10:10 AM UTC

The Dutch Ministry of Defence has ordered containerised towed-array sonar systems from Amsterdam-based OPTICS11 under the Anti-Submarine Warfare In A Box (ASWINABO) programme. The systems, based on the company's OptiArray fibre-optic towed array, can be rapidly deployed on a wide variety of surface vessels, including unmanned surface vessels, giving the Royal Netherlands Navy anti-submarine sensing capability on ships not originally designed for it. Unlike conventional electrical arrays, OptiArray is passive, acoustically silent, and immune to electromagnetic interference. The order comes amid growing concerns over subsea infrastructure security, with autonomous underwater vehicles becoming more capable and Russian shadow fleets and spy ships operating in Northern European waters. The project aims to establish production and integration capability for future large-scale deployment. OPTICS11 CEO Paul Heiden and Captain Lucas Leppink of the Dutch Ministry of Defence highlighted the system's flexibility and potential as a game-changer for maritime security and undersea infrastructure protection.