Canada’s River-class destroyers to feature Ultra Maritime’s torpedo defense systems

Defense company Ultra Maritime has received a CA$89 million contract from Lockheed Martin Canada to supply three shipsets of surface ship torpedo defense (SSTD) for the River-class destroyer (RCD) program.

Ultra Maritime provides torpedo defense solutions, offering a full “sense to effect” torpedo defense capability used by many navies worldwide to protect ships and crews from torpedo threats. Its systems feature a combination of an in-line tow and automatic threat alerting.

The company is collaborating with Lockheed Martin Canada and the Canadian Department of National Defense (DND) on River-class ships.

Ultra Maritime has previously secured contracts to supply hull-mounted sonars (HMS) for the Canadian Navy’s program and towed arrays for the Halifax-class ships.

“Having previously secured a three shipset production order to supply Hull Mounted Sonars (HMS) for the RCD program, as well as supplying twelve UWSU towed arrays into the Halifax-class, Ultra Maritime is pleased to play a pivotal role in delivering state-of-the-art Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) capabilities to the Royal Canadian Navy,” said John Gallagher, Vice President and General Manager of Ultra Maritime Canada.

“We are fully committed in our partnership with Lockheed Martin Canada, our Canadian workforce and suppliers. More importantly, we are proud to serve the Royal Canadian Navy and take great pride in providing our life-saving capabilities.”

“We are well placed to execute the SSTD program utilizing expertise across our global Ultra Maritime lines of business, led by the team here in Dartmouth,” Steve Rogers, Senior Director of RCD Programs at Ultra Maritime, commented.

Through its involvement in the RCD program and adherence to the Industrial Technological Benefits (ITB) policy, Ultra Maritime has established an Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Center of Excellence in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

The next major phase of the River-class destroyer program has kicked off with the recent signing of a contract between BAE Systems and Irving Shipbuilding.

BAE Systems has designed the ship to meet the Royal Canadian Navy’s specific requirements, and under this new contract will provide support and consultancy services throughout the build phase. Irving Shipbuilding is in charge of the construction of the initial three River-class destroyers.