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.”