Leonardo at IMDEX Asia with technologies for complete naval control above and under the sea

Rome,  02 May 2023 10:20

Leonardo, a strategic partner of the Italian Navy and a key supplier to many international naval forces, will exhibit at the leading naval and maritime defence event IMDEX Asia in Singapore 3rd to 5th May. During the show, the company will present multi-domain technologies developed to meet the modern needs of Armed Forces and strengthen its position as a reliable partner to the region’s defence industry.

Leonardo’s complete solutions for naval operations included advanced naval Command & Control systems, weapon systems, sensors, underwater systems, optronics, maritime communication systems, aircraft, helicopters, space communications and unmanned platforms. With its products already chosen by 70 Navies, Leonardo can meet all mission requirements for any type of ship. Its products and services incorporate innovative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, automation, data processing and information management. 

Amongst the company’s leading technologies, the Combat Management System (CMS) ATHENA MK2. This equips, amongst others, Italian Navy’s new offshore multi-purpose patrol vessels “Thaon di Revel” (also known as PPA for "Pattugliatore Polivalente d'Altura") and “Trieste” LHD (Landing Helicopter Dock), whose capabilities will be on display in Singapore. As the ‘brain’ of the ship, the Combat Management System provides operators with situational awareness including a complete tactical picture of the operational scenario at sea, above and under the water, enabling operators to plan and quickly execute missions. Modular and scalable, the system covers all combat missions across different warfare domains as well as management and support functions, integrating sensors and effectors in a multi-layered approach to satisfy even the most demanding requirements of modern Navies. Drawing on the surface variant, the ATHENA MK2/U has also been developed for the U-212 Near Future Submarines (NFS) currently being built for the Italian Navy.

For control of underwater domain, Leonardo designs and develops light weight and heavy weight torpedoes, anti-torpedo, countermeasures and sonar systems. On stand will be the lightweight modular sonic system ULISSES, developed by Leonardo to maximise effectiveness in Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) operations on fixed- and rotary-wing maritime patrol aircraft by minimizing weight and size. As a world leader in small, medium and large-calibre naval guns (12.7 to 127mm), Leonardo will showcase its DART (Driven Ammunition Reduced Time of Flight) guided ammunition, effective against highly manoeuvring missiles and small, fast targets. Displayed next to the DART, the Vulcano 76 ammunition is a disruptive solution for enhanced naval gun fire support and is already in service. 

IMDEX Asia will be the first stop of the Italian Navy’s Multi-purpose Offshore Patrol Vessel (PPA) “Francesco Morosini” campaign in the Far East. The unit, designed for dual missions, integrates several latest-generation Leonardo systems, including the ATHENA MK2, the Naval Cockpit - that requires only two operators to conduct ship and quick reaction operations – and the new electro-optical DSS-IRST (Distributed Static Staring-InfraRed Search and Tracking System) that protects the ship from multiple threats along coastal areas (Littoral) and on the open sea (Blue Water).