New Missile Launcher Could Solve Major Weakness In US Navy

Defense contractor BAE Systems has successfully test-fired a new missile launcher designed to allow American warships to replenish their weapons at sea without returning to port.

The Adaptable Deck Launcher (ADL) is designed to give Navy vessels additional defensive firepower while allowing crews to reload missiles during extended deployments, according to a Tuesday announcement from BAE Systems. The system could address a longstanding vulnerability in American naval operations, where warships must withdraw from combat to replenish conventional missile launch cells, according the U.S. Navy.

“This was the first live fire test of the prototype design of the ADL, it was a land-based test,” a BAE spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “BAE Systems, in coordination with the U.S. Navy’s NATO Sea Sparrow Project Office (NSPO), has a robust series of land-based and at-sea tests planned as part of the certification process for the Adaptable Deck Launcher.”

Developed under a Pentagon contract for the NATO Seasparrow Project Office, the launcher builds on the Navy’s existing Mk 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS), which is installed inside warships’ hulls, according to BAE Systems.

The Pentagon referred to the U.S. Navy, which did not respond to a request for comment.

Unlike conventional launch cells, the ADL mounts directly onto a vessel’s deck, making its missile canisters more accessible for reloading. The system uses existing Mk 41 electronics and logistics infrastructure, potentially reducing costs and simplifying integration, according to BAE Systems. The launcher fires Evolved SeaSparrow Missiles (ESSM), defensive interceptors designed to destroy approaching aircraft, supersonic anti-ship missiles and other airborne threats. Its Mk 25 canisters can accommodate four interceptors each.

The launcher offers the Navy “additional flexibility in how it sustains combat loads at sea,” Jason Casciotti, BAE Systems’ vice president of Weapons Systems, said according to the company’s announcement.

The company envisions installing the ADL aboard aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships and other surface combatants. Smaller configurations could also equip medium-sized unmanned surface vessels, according to BAE Systems.

“ADL offers flexible maritime operations across aircraft carriers, amphibious ships and other surface combatants,” a BAE spokesperson told the DCNF. “It’s also optimized for unmanned warfare, offering compact configurations ideal for medium unmanned surface vessels.”

The development follows years of concern over the Navy’s ability to sustain missile-intensive combat operations without repeatedly withdrawing ships from their assigned stations.

American warships expended significant quantities of defensive ammunition countering attacks from Iranian-backed Houthi militants in the Red Sea. The destroyer USS Carney conducted 51 combat engagements against Houthi missiles and drones during its deployment, according to the U.S. Navy.

British forces encountered similar logistical challenges when HMS Diamond temporarily withdrew from Red Sea operations to replenish ammunition and supplies in Gibraltar. Another warship, HMS Richmond, assumed its responsibilities during the absence, according to the Royal Navy.

The inability to replenish missiles at sea could force American warships to travel thousands of miles to suitable ports during a conflict, Former Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro previously warned in Oct. 2024.

The Navy has already pursued another solution through its Transferable Reload At-Sea Method (TRAM), which uses hydraulic equipment to replenish conventional Mk 41 launch cells while underway.

Sailors aboard the cruiser USS Chosin successfully demonstrated TRAM off the California coast in Oct. 2024, loading an empty missile canister into the vessel’s vertical launching system. The demonstration marked the Navy’s first successful underway reload using the technology, according to the Naval Sea Systems Command.

BAE’s launcher approaches the same challenge differently, adding an accessible deck-mounted system rather than modifying how crews reload existing launch cells.

However, the company has not publicly established that the ADL has completed operational at-sea reloading trials, nor has it announced a deployment schedule or confirmed Navy procurement orders, according to its Oct. 27 announcement.

The successful live-fire test nevertheless represents another step toward addressing a potentially critical vulnerability in prolonged naval warfare, particularly during future conflicts where access to friendly ports could be limited.

“ADL offsets the operational challenges associated with vessels needed to return to port for missile reloads as it was designed with expedited reloading at sea,” a BAE spokesperson told the DCNF.

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