The American company General Atomics has presented an electromagnetic catapult for launching unmanned aerial vehicles from various types of ships.

Naval News reported on this.

The company notes that the Electric Unmanned Aircraft Launch System is part of a broader effort. These efforts aim to ensure the ability to launch drones in limited conditions both on land and at sea.

“As you know, with the proliferation of RPAS [Remotely Piloted Aircraft System] worldwide, whether on land or sea, we’ve been asked to look at the launch of RPAS in very small footprint from Navy vessels. It’s been looked at primarily Europe right now. Possibly over in the Indo-Pacific area too,” Gary Hopper, Vice President of Strategic Development at General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems, shared with Naval News.

The company emphasized that the new concept completely differs from the electromagnetic catapult used on Ford-class aircraft carriers. The new launcher takes up minimal space on the ship.

The new launcher requires only 1.2 by 0.6 meters of free space and a 22-meter runway.

The company has submitted proposals for installing the system, particularly on the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces’ Izumo-class helicopter carriers. However, other types of ships are also being considered.

“We are considering other options, other NATO countries. I would say that this is more of a NATO initiative to consider the possibility of installing them on the ship. Although we are using this particular ship, there are other ships, again, similar, of similar size. In fact, this concerns a takeoff distance of 22 meters, which is not very long,” Hopper said.

General Atomics has already tested its drones on the HMS Prince of Wales (R09) and ROKS Dokdo (LPH-6111) in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

General Atomics has recently unveiled the design of its first air-launched Strike Missile.

GA representatives kept the dimensions, payload, and range of the new missile secret. They only noted that it is intended for use from aircraft platforms.

It is worth noting that the development of the new missile is taking place simultaneously with the Pentagon’s active efforts to find and develop a simple-to-manufacture and cheap cruise missile, the cost of which will not exceed 150 thousand dollars.