The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has announced a Project COOKSON Challenge Session, set to take place on 22 January 2025 in London.
The event invites industry partners from NATO, Ukraine, and Five-Eyes countries to help shape the development of a versatile, fast, and low-observable maritime system designed for operations in Ukraine and beyond.
According to the MOD, “If you have expertise in vessels, vessel launcher systems, surface-surface effectors, counter air effectors, marinised GNSS hardened navigation, sensors, integrators, autonomous systems, or beyond-line-of-sight communications, this session might be of interest to you.”
What is Project COOKSON?
Project COOKSON envisions a small, fast attack vessel equipped with modular payloads and capable of operating in challenging environments. The MOD described the system as follows:
A COOKSON system consists of a small, fast, vessel with low observability, with >2 one-way effectors mounted on it, including relevant launch system and support equipment. A COOKSON system should be able to travel to Ukraine via Ground Lines of Communication (GLOC) [and] must fit onto a 40 foot flatbed, ideally a 20 foot flatbed.”
The vessel is designed for reuse across multiple missions, with modular payloads allowing flexibility for different operational needs. Once deployed in Ukraine, the system will operate autonomously or semi-autonomously to deliver payloads, complete missions, and return to friendly coastlines for re-arming and maintenance.
Operational Objectives
The MOD outlined several critical capabilities for the COOKSON system:
- A top speed exceeding 40 knots, even in Sea State 3 conditions.
- A range of 800 nautical miles fully laden and a minimum endurance of 72 hours.
- Low observability and the ability to operate in GNSS-degraded or denied environments.
- The capability to carry multiple (>2) one-way effectors with a high-explosive warhead and a range of 30–100 km.
- Hard-kill air defence capabilities to counter threats such as rotary-wing aircraft and ISR drones.
The MOD emphasised in the notice to industry, “The COOKSON system will be able to strike a target whilst the vessel and the effector are in a GNSS-denied or degraded environment.”
Concept of Operations
A COOKSON system consists of a small, fast vessel with low observability, equipped with more than two one-way effectors mounted alongside the relevant launch system and support equipment. The system is designed to be transported to Ukraine via Ground Lines of Communication (GLOC) and must fit onto a 40-foot flatbed truck, ideally a 20-foot flatbed.
If necessary, the vessel and effectors can be transported on separate flatbeds. While the ability to move the system by Strategic Air Transport is desirable, it is not essential, and the Ministry of Defence (MOD) can provide support to achieve this. The vessel is intended for reuse across multiple missions, making it distinct from a one-way attack platform.
Once in Ukraine, the COOKSON system will be deployed into a body of water, most likely a sea. At this point, the one-way effectors, if not already loaded, will be attached to the vessel, and it will be prepared for departure. This location will provide basic services, such as fuel, cranes, and the capability to rearm the vessel.
When loaded with its effectors, the COOKSON vessel will travel under its own power to the desired launch location. Target information, including location, will be sent to the vessel remotely. Target acquisition, identification, and mission planning may be conducted by third parties, although industry contributions are welcome.
The operators of the COOKSON system will then prepare the vessel for launching its effectors, potentially doing so remotely. They will verify the system’s functionality through a Built-In Test (BIT). Once confirmed to be operational, the COOKSON effectors will be launched, with all effectors (>2) expected to engage a single target to ensure mission success.
The COOKSON system also includes a requirement for hard-kill air defence capabilities to deter or defeat low-level aerial threats, such as rotary-wing aircraft or ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) drones.
After completing its mission, the COOKSON vessel will return to a friendly coastline for inspection, maintenance, repair, and re-arming. Ideally, the vessel will be removed from the water for these activities to be conducted on land, ensuring it is ready for subsequent missions.
Effectors in the COOKSON System
The effectors designed for the COOKSON system have several key characteristics and operational requirements:
- Payload: Each effector carries an approximately 80kg high-explosive (HE) warhead, with the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) open to providing the warheads as Government Furnished Equipment (GFx).
- Range: The effectors have a range of 30–100 km and are capable of following pre-programmed routes with end-stage guidance.
- Target Set: The primary targets are non-hardened land sites, with a secondary capability to engage other surface vessels.
- Operational Capability: The COOKSON system and its effectors are designed to operate in GNSS-denied or degraded environments, ensuring effectiveness even in challenging electronic warfare conditions.
- Production Capacity: The system is expected to support the production of a minimum of 20 effectors per month within six months of an order. The MOD emphasizes the need for high-volume, low-cost production.
- Platform Considerations: The size and weight of the effectors will influence the design and characteristics of the COOKSON vessel to ensure compatibility and functionality.
Industry Collaboration
The Challenge Session aims to explore key aspects of the COOKSON system’s feasibility, including:
- The trade-offs between crewed versus uncrewed designs.
- Integration of air defence systems, such as 0.50 calibre weapons, MANPADs, or more advanced systems.
- Scalability and production timelines, with a target of 2–3 vessels per month within six months of an order.
The MOD added, “The secondary purpose of the Challenge Session is to enable industry-to-industry networking, ahead of next steps.”
Next Steps
Insights from the Challenge Session will inform the next stages of Project COOKSON. The MOD plans to launch a procurement activity in Q1 2025 for an initial 10 COOKSON systems, along with hundreds of effectors. The procurement process will be competitive, with a small number of proposals (2–5) receiving funding for demonstrations in late 2025 or early 2026.
Project COOKSON represents a critical part of the UK’s contribution to the Maritime Capability Coalition, co-led with Norway. The UK aims to deliver a cutting-edge maritime capability to enhance Ukraine’s operational effectiveness in the ongoing conflict.
Industry participants must register by 16 January 2025 to attend the session, with attendance limited to one representative per company. For more details, visit the registration link provided by the MOD.
This is one for Small and Medium Enterprises, or should be.
Industrially this is a useful exercise as it is a quick flash to bank project – assuming timescales are met – and will demonstrate whether or not the UK can still innovate. Hopefully, they will apply Sir Robert Watson-Watt’s (of radar fame) maxim, “Give them the third best to go on with; the second best comes too late, the best never comes.”
Oh, and can we have a couple to operate from T31, for example, just to demonstrate that cheap and cheerful can deliver significant capabilities…
Cheers CR
This is the sort of thing that should certainly be kept in mind when designing new frigates and marine support vessels. They need to be flexible ships that can exploit innovative concepts even before we know exactly what those concepts might be in the sea/air environment. No easy task but with imagination can be perceived well enough to influence design factors that will be flexible enough to incorporate them with the minimum of re design and adaptation over time. The RR handling system is a great example of that I think.
As an aside I did think of a sub or semi submersible vessel that performed very similarly to this concept carrying effectors of this nature a year and more back that could be useful to Ukraine inspired perhaps by the earlier design concepts/prototypes for SBS operatives. That was at a time when Ukraine was struggling to operate in the Black Sea mind, since then they have so denied Russian operations there that simpler and cheaper surface vessels can probably do most of that mission with the added advantage of speed.
give them the archers, they’re f all use to the RN and having them in the fleet inventory is a joke to hide all that is missing
Hi Spyinthesky,
Yeh agree with your point about the need to design flexible frigates and support vessels. This is even more important given the rate of development in Autonomous Vehicles (AV) as their capabilities and therefore their support needs develop the challenge for mother ship designers is going to be complicated. The only way forward that I can see is the designers of ships and AV need to maintain watching briefs on each others developments and they will have to accept that there will be limitations and requirements across the interface between disciplines. So T31 will be able to deploy with AV up to say 20′ (just a illustrative guess) so anything larger would need to be deployed by something akin to the one of the Offshore Support Ships bought for the RFA. All very possible and should be a routine part of the concept phase and early detailed requirements and design processes.
For this requirement I would hope for a relatively simple vessel with basic autonomous features, auto-pilot for example, and pre-programmed weapon launch commands for the strike missiles. The AA weapons would be more of a challenge as this might lean towards AI engagement decisions given the envisaged short range engagements. It seems for what I have read that many are still reluctant to deploy AI within the engagement cycle suggesting that trust in such systems is still low – so perhaps man-in-the-loop? I would also only put a machine gun on board for this role as it is a small boat. The biggest missile is likely going to be in the Brimstone class as well. Most of the systems will need to be off the shelf production systems to meet the timescales and likely cost constraints, so a pick and mix approach. I would also pitch an attritable system, i.e. one we would prefer to get back and reuse but one that isn’t going to cause sleepless nights if it fails to return – so definitely unmanned.
Cheers CR
Good take I think. The only thing I can add is about the AA requirement. Obviously Ukraine has just claimed at least one and up to three downed helicopters with their Seababy platform using manpad type missiles I believe in recent weeks. I assume they used video to initially target and then launch remotely judging by the pictures. Judging from that feed this certainly doesn’t look as easy as one might wish maintaining sufficient ‘lock’ on the target looked difficult. Now these new larger vessels will be larger and more stable so easier to stabilise target acquisition via that method but equally I presume the speed and unpredictable movement will still cause a delay in targeting and launching remotely (others will know more than me obviously) so I suspect it’s quite a skilful process. So certainly an ai element would be more than useful I am sure and would improve the hit rate. As these are valuable assets they will need to be more capable than an Seababy obviously. I was thinking if cannon were used over missiles an ai automated element (even if human permissive) would be involved I assume.
Outsourced manufacturing to China no doubt. lol
Please can you share the MOD registration link?
I did a search on Google. D3 Tenders website has more details.
Search I used was: “how to register with MOD project cookson”
Hope that helps.
Cheers CR
300 of them would Benefit the navy
not like proper ships
Agreed they’re not proper ships but if they’re available at scale and can be sent into situations reducing the risks to our frigates and carriers its a brilliant idea even at a couple of mill each.
No, not like proper ships.
But, realistically, are we going to get a navy of 25-30 frigates and destroyers, over a dozen SSNs etc?
Drone boats might help add more mass to the Royal Navy, just as drone aircraft could add mass to the RAF. In both cases they’ll be much cheaper than building 25-30 large and expensive ships (and trying to find the crews for them!) or 300-odd expensive fast jets.
We need platforms to deploy these boats as they’re not worthy of the open sea, currently we’re severely lacking in that regard
Might be useful for deploying in the CSG this year and tested for chasing off adversaries, pirates, firing at the Houthis if close enough? It’s likely to be copied by others and then we’ll end up facing the same some day.
Why not just put RPG heads and Semtex onto RC speed boats?
Cheaper in the long run too
Isn’t that what they already have, probably more expertise than anyone present on that. This is clearly a step up in capability giving the ability to attack from some distance rather than having to hit the target with the Seababy. Equally it has the capability to attack land targets a very useful asset around Crimea. This capability has clearly been discussed with the Ukranians and clearly in any conflict you need to out innovate the opposition, nothing stands still. More options the better.
What happened to the 8 P-50U Fast Inshore Attack Craft?
Or is this the project?
That’s an interesting requirement, clearly a stage up / heavy refinement from the Maguras V5s that Ukraine operate at the moment.
My only question would be the spec to carry >2 “one-way effectors” (that’s a new term on me, but I do enjoy a good military euphemism) of similar range and warhead to a GMLRS (i.e. 227 mm dia. And ~3 m long), and air defence systems. Realistically, if they actually want to knock an MI-8 or Hind into the sea, that has to be a MANPAD, not a .50 cal. That’s a lot of firepower to bolt onto a 15-35 foot speedboat with a range of 700+ km. I’d imagine it’ll work out to be one of the other.
Nice to see that these would, theoretically, be launchable from a T26 mission bay.
Aren’t all effectors one way unless you are planning on shooting yourself? Otherwise they’d be platforms, wouldn’t they?
Haha, well that’s kind of what I’d assumed too! I suppose certain FPV drones can return to sender if they don’t find a target, but that’s normally a bit risky- certainly with the ones that have jury-rigged warheads made from RPGs.
I just enjoy the strange need to euphematise the tools of war, for whose benefit exactly?!
Maguras have R-74 air to air missiles and reportedly successfully engaged M-8s so I am sure these are more than capable of carrying similar armament but yes one or the other I suspect. Be very interesting to see if Brimstones, or Martlets might be used or whether only Ukranian missiles considering the danger of a complete one being captured.
Yeh, “one way effectors” is a bit silly. The word ‘effector’ was adopted as a catch all to include passive means as well as hard kill stuff so the phrase one way effector could allow for a missile or a 15″ gun 🙂
Cheers CR
Didn’t Babcock have a contract to build these for Ukraine dating back before the 2022 invasion? As I recall one was to be built in Rosyth the rest in Ukraine.
That’s what I also want to know as well. Ukraine ordered 8 P-50U Fast Inshore Attack Craft, but after that, it went quiet.
Well they can’t get them till conflict is over that’s why these new craft have to be flatbed truck moveable, so a lot smaller.
I’m still waiting for this K50 Kraken idea. Mayabe that can be turned into an unmanned platform.
£3 billion a year for however long it takes, ain’t no one told these imbeciles that Donald the maniac has ended this war this month/year ?
Give them to Taiwan to attack the dragon or South Korea to attack hee fuk yu.
It would appear to this humble student of war that there are people who won’t be happy until we’re all in a nuclear conflict where the winners will be lowers, literally.
Make peace you idiots 🫶✌️
Pipe down Vatnik
Tell Putin to take his troops out of Ukraine and Zelensky will agree to peace. Tell Zelensky to agree to hand over as much of Ukraine as Putin fancies and quit in favour of a Putin puppet and Putin will agree to peace. Of course neither is in a mood to agree to the terms of the other. The Donald can’t end this war and neither can commentators on this forum.
Nice one George
MAKS 24 aka @Maks_NAFO_FELLA on Twitter has been quoting your work on this thread !
Picked up 8000 + views
Certainly got plenty of people interested and showing its importance in helping Ukraine with Project COOKSON
Sounds like a neat thing for the RN if there’s the cash. Which there probably isn’t to be honest.
Is anyone else a bit curious at the “one way effector”? 80kg warhead, 100km range. Only thing I could find that fit was a Turkish lightweight AShM. Far too heavy to be SPEAR 3. Reads more like a cut down NSM or something.