The Ministry of Defence has indicated that the Royal Navy’s DragonFire laser weapon could be deployed on a wider range of warships than previously confirmed.
According to UK Defence Journal, this information was confirmed by Defence Secretary Luke Pollard in a parliamentary response published on 27 January.
According to Pollard, the DragonFire project remains on schedule to begin deliveries from 2027, but he declined to name the specific ships that will receive the weapon beyond the first installation.
The DragonFire system, developed by a UK industrial consortium led by MBDA, Leonardo, and QinetiQ, is intended to provide short-range air defence against threats including drones and small aerial targets.
“DragonFire is a modular capability that gives the Royal Navy flexibility regarding when and where it is deployed; therefore, it is not possible to list the specific ships on which this capability will be installed,” Pollard said.
Although the Ministry of Defence has already confirmed that the first DragonFire system will be installed on a Type 45 destroyer in 2027, the latest response goes further, directly linking the weapon to the Navy’s evolving mission module approach.
Pollard stated that “the inclusion of the mission module concept across the Hybrid Royal Navy, already being implemented on Type 26 and Type 31 frigates, provides maximum tactical flexibility regarding where the Navy may deploy this weapon.”
Photo: Royal Navy. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
