New Mission Bay Handling System Revealed

Kongsberg Maritime's new Mission Bay Handling System quickly deploys and recovers manned and unmanned crafts, such as autonomous underwater vehicles By Joseph Macey / 11 Sep 2023

Discover Leading Defense Technology Solutions

Discover cutting-edge solutions from leading global suppliers
SUPPLIER SPOTLIGHT
Kongsberg Maritime Mission Bay Handling System
Follow DA

Kongsberg Maritime has introduced a new Mission Bay Handling System for naval vessels, aiming to set a new standard in naval mission-sensitive versatility. 

The next-generation of surface combatants are poised to carry a diverse array of manned and unmanned off-board vehicles and modular mission packages. To meet these evolving demands, the Mission Bay Handling System has been designed to offer an adaptable and flexible integration solution suitable for a wide range of naval operations, both current and future.

The Mission Bay Handling System is said to be game-changer for naval forces worldwide, as it enables the efficient deployment and recovery of both manned and unmanned crafts, with a vast range of hull types and propulsion configurations, from both sides of the ship. In today’s rapidly changing battlespace, naval forces demand flexibility and multi-purpose ships. Thus, Kongsberg Maritime’s Mission Bay Handling System is one key to transforming naval capability.

Robert Breivik, Kongsberg’s Senior Sales Manager – Naval, said: “I speak to a lot of navies, and the one thing they all want is modularity. Navies want platforms that can easily be transformed to meet mission requirements, so the days of ships that are dedicated to a small range of tasks are over.”

The global security landscape is evolving more rapidly than ever before, with urgent requirements in areas like underwater surveillance and monitoring of seabed utility assets like pipelines and cables. Modern ships must be multi-role, which means carrying a growing suite of newer, high-tech in-sea assets. The Mission Bay Handling System is designed to swiftly, safely, and effectively transport these assets, and where relevant their crews, to and from the hangar aboard the ship.

The system is suitable for a wide range of naval ships and is widely scalable to fit the size of the mission bay. It consists of three key elements:

Overhead Frame System: Using a standardized interface with the ship, this comprises rails and an ‘interface unit’ that connects to a wide range of interchangeable tools, enabling quick tool changes without altering the core of the handling system. It offers both single and dual rail systems, with capacities up to 12 tonnes.

The frame system is fixed to the deck above the mission bay, allowing in-sea assets to be suspended and easily moved from their storage spaces.

Multi-Purpose Hangar Crane: Handles 10’ and 20’ ISO containers up to 15 tonnes, rotating through 360 degrees and extending to the water level. This crane excels in the rapid deployment and retrieval of daughter craft up to 10 tonnes.

“Through our extensive experience from a lot of similar systems we have developed for subsea, oceanographic and research ships, this crane is not only very capable, but it gives navies options. It can handle cargo in standard shipping containers, and switch to deploying subsea and surface craft, quickly and safely,” adds Breivik.

Additionally, various auxiliary equipment is available to complement the two main handling systems, a deck skid system, containerized launch and recovery systems, cargo handling crane for containers, and an overhead auxiliary crane for lighter loads.

Key benefits of the Mission Bay Handling System include:

  • Clean Deck: No permanent tripping hazards or obstacles installed on the deck.
  • Modularity: Built from an interchangeable suite of flexible handling systems.
  • Adaptive: Designed to fit hangars with different dimensions and shapes.
  • Time and cost saving: Eases mobilization and demobilization, eliminating costly rebuilds between each mission setup.

Kongsberg Maritime believes the Mission Bay Handling System represents a major step forward in mission capabilities, offering unmatched adaptability, efficiency, and safety, ensuring that naval forces are prepared to meet the challenges of the modern maritime battlespace.

Posted by Joseph Macey Connect & Contact

Latest Articles

Practical Methods for Balancing UAV Propellers Safely & Effectively

Tyto Robotics discusses the ways to add and remove materials from drone propellers, considering advantages and disadvantages of various products and techniques

Jul 11, 2025
Military-Grade Tethered Drone Systems for Surveillance & Security Missions

DPI UAV Systems (Dragonfly Pictures) is a developer of advanced tethered drone systems for military, government and security applications. As...

Jul 11, 2025
Modular Chassis Design Enhances Deployment Flexibility for Defense Systems

LCR Embedded Systems explains how modular chassis design supports rapid deployment and cost-effective packaging for rugged embedded systems using open standards like VPX and SOSA

Jul 10, 2025
MilDef to Supply Rugged IT Equipment for Norway’s Defense Digitization

MilDef has secured a major contract with Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace to supply rugged IT equipment supporting Norway’s defense digitization efforts

Jul 10, 2025
Tethered Drone Technologies for Mission-Critical Defense & Security Applications

Defense Advancement showcases Elistair's tethered drone solutions for mission-critical defense and security applications

Jul 10, 2025
New Oscilloquartz Optical Cesium Clocks Enhance Network Timing Precision

Adtran is expanding its Oscilloquartz portfolio with the new OSA 3200 SP and OSA 3250 ePRC optical cesium models, providing improved holdover and simplified maintenance for telecom, data center, utility, and defense networks

Jul 09, 2025

Featured Content

New Oscilloquartz Optical Cesium Clocks Enhance Network Timing Precision

Adtran is expanding its Oscilloquartz portfolio with the new OSA 3200 SP and OSA 3250 ePRC optical cesium models, providing improved holdover and simplified maintenance for telecom, data center, utility, and defense networks

Jul 09, 2025
Teledyne FLIR OEM Whitepaper: Synthetic Data Generation for AI Object Detection

Read Teledyne FLIR OEM’s whitepaper on AIMMGen™, a defense-oriented synthetic data and AI model generation pipeline tailored to Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) and object classification tasks

Jul 03, 2025
Galvion’s Production Hub in Poland Now Open & Operational

Galvion's new Production Hub in Poland has formally opened through a large ceremony held at the Gdansk facility with factory tours, demonstrations, and live models of helmets

Jun 30, 2025
Advancing Defense Capability Through Strategic Collaboration Defense Advancement works with major OEMs to foster collaboration and increase engagement with SMEs, to accelerate innovation and drive defense capabilities forward.