Kongsberg Maritime proposes Arctic Hunter drones for Royal Navy

Kongsberg Maritime has introduced the Arctic Hunter, an unmanned surface vessel (USV) designed to detect submarines in the Arctic. The concept utilizes a converted 56-meter fishing trawler design, replacing commercial interiors with autonomous features that allow the craft to operate unattended for approximately 60 days.

Developed to meet British Royal Navy requirements for the Type 92 program, the vessels would function as sensor platforms rather than independent combatants. They are intended to support future Type 26 frigates within a hybrid fleet of crewed and uncrewed ships. The Arctic Hunter would be equipped with submarine-hunting sonar technology from Thales UK and secure military communications systems.

To minimize acoustic interference with sonar, certain components such as the propeller are slated for redesign. Kongsberg Maritime proposes operating a flotilla of 10 ships from a hub located west of the Bear Gap, a strategic stretch of the Arctic Ocean between Svalbard and Norway, to ensure continuous monitoring of Russian submarine transit routes toward the Atlantic.