The New Zealand Ministry of Defence signed a contract on 21st May with MBDA for the provision of Sea Ceptor for the Local Area Air Defence element of the Royal New Zealand Navy’s ANZAC Frigate Systems Upgrade (FSU) project. This contract confirms the selection of the system by the RNZN for its ANZAC frigates that was announced in October 2013.
The appeal of Sea Ceptor is creating significant interest in a number of markets around the world and its versatility makes it the ideal choice for the ANZAC upgrade. As an active radar system, Sea Ceptor does not require the dedicated tracker/illuminator radars on which semi-active systems depend. Sea Ceptor deploys the CAMM (Common Anti-Air Modular Missile) which, due to its soft launch technology, requires no efflux management system. This minimizes the system’s mass and footprint thereby allowing for greater flexibility regarding ship installation positions. CAMM missile canisters are compatible with a wide range of vertical launch systems.
CAMM features in a family of next generation, all-weather, air defence weapon systems with applications for sea and land environments providing 360° air defence coverage against multiple simultaneous targets, both airborne and surface. This flexibility extends to installation options, a choice of launchers, including the widely used MK 41, and system compatibility with a range of sensors. Cost is a major advantage of CAMM and customers will benefit from a “10 year canister” solution for maximum ease of inventory service management and minimum through life costs.