European nations unite to develop advanced anti-torpedo technologies

Defence News highlights that the development of advanced technologies to counter underwater threats is gaining traction in the evolving landscape of naval defence. 

Despite over a decade of research, leading nations Germany and the Netherlands are still several years away from equipping their navies with a viable hard-kill torpedo countermeasure. Germany's navy has been exploring a system known as SeaSpider, developed by Atlas Elektronik, for several years. The development of this sole technology option in Europe dates back at least 15 years, according to the company's website. While Atlas has attempted to promote the system as combat-ready, no navy has committed to it yet, and the Dutch Ministry of Defence has repeatedly delayed the initiation of a formal procurement program for SeaSpider.

 Although the German navy conducted tests years ago, it ultimately chose not to adopt the system. The Canadian navy, which was considered a potential early customer due to its large-scale surface combatant program, did not include SeaSpider in its initial list of future technologies. A spokesperson for Atlas's parent company, Thyssen Krupp Marine Systems, refrained from commenting on SeaSpider, citing previous requests from the German navy to maintain confidentiality. Meanwhile, a representative from the German Ministry of Defense stated that the technology's classified nature and contractual status prevent the release of specific details.

 Nonetheless, officials in Berlin consider the ability to intercept torpedoes with torpedoes as a crucial capability for force protection. Historically, torpedoes have been a significant threat to surface vessels, accounting for more than half of the sinkings of US Navy ships during World War II, according to US Coast Guard data referenced by Dutch researchers at TNO, a government-affiliated research organization.

Experts assert that defense against torpedoes is largely ineffective, leaving surface ships vulnerable once such weapons are in motion. The primary defensive strategies involve maneuvering or deploying decoys to mislead incoming torpedoes. However, decoys fail against wake-homing variants, which track their targets by following the acoustic noise generated by a ship’s propulsion system. In 2017, the US Navy tested an anti-torpedo interceptor on three of its aircraft carriers but removed the system in 2018.

Officials cited the interceptor's uncertain reliability and untested lethality, despite showing “some capability to defeat an incoming torpedo.” SeaSpider claims to intercept all types of torpedoes by utilizing data from both the carrier ship's sensors and the interceptor torpedo to calculate collision trajectories with incoming threats. The system has recently resumed development under a European Union initiative, led by Germany and the Netherlands, known as the “Anti-torpedo Torpedo” (ATT). 

A project description on an EU website expresses a goal of creating a production-ready demonstrator for an anti-torpedo system with a qualified effector and a proven functional chain—an apparent nod to the Atlas product, which the Dutch Ministry of Defence confirmed to Defense News. A spokesperson indicated that SeaSpider technology is still too immature for a formal program, though Dutch officials have intended to advance this step since 2022, pending parliamentary notification. If implemented, possibly by 2025, budget analysts estimate the torpedo-killing capability could cost between 250 million euros and 1 billion euros, according to the Dutch Ministry of Defence. 

By Naila Huseynova