Miecznik: Contract for external communication and electronic warfare systems

On Tuesday, May 7, 2024, PGZ Stocznia Wojenna (PGZ Naval Shipyard), part of the Polish Armaments Group (PGZ), announced that it will provide radio communication systems and Electronic Warfare systems for the Miecznik frigates. An Electronic Warfare Academy will also be established at the Shipyard. PGZ Stocznia Wojenna signed two contracts for supplying equipment for the Miecznik frigates with the German company Rohde & Schwarz.

Photos: PGZ Stocznia Wojenna

The first contract includes the delivery of sets of external radio communication means in the HF/VHF/UHF range. The radio stations, receivers, and antenna field components supplied by R&S will be part of the Integrated Communication System (IcommS) produced by PGZ Stocznia Wojenna. Similar systems developed and supplied by PGZ SW are already in use on the Kormoran type mine destroyers, where they have received very favorable evaluations from users. The Miecznik frigates will receive a solution that is the result of several years of developmental work by the shipyard’s Electronics and Armament Centre. The Polish IcommS will ensure secure exchange of information in tactical channels using audio end terminals and managing military text messages through the MMHS Hermes system.

The second contract concerns the supply of a radio-electronic warfare system (RESM/CESM). The Miecznik frigates will be equipped with proven state-of-the-art electronic warfare systems from Rohde & Schwarz, which have been successfully used on the four recently commissioned German frigates F-125. The same systems will also be installed on the future F-126 type frigates. Thanks to the strategic relationship built in recent years between the companies, the PGZ Stocznia Wojenna will also establish an Radioelectronic Warfare and SIGINT Academy based on the Rohde & Schwarz software simulator. This will be the only international engineering and training base in Poland for RESM/CESM, COMINT, and ELINT for the ships of the Polish Navy.

Electronic Warfare systems utilize electronic equipment in military operations to ensure an advantage for allied forces. The aim of EW activities is to identify, intercept, and assess threats, supplement the reconnaissance picture of communication systems and radar signals, and present condensed information in a system that visualizes the field of operations and combat, facilitating decision-making by ship crews.

Thanks to the contracted system, Polish frigates will be able to detect, determine direction, intercept, identify, record, and analyze radar signals and radio communication signals.

On April 26 of this year, PGZ Stocznia Wojenna reported the completion of German tests of the MTU 20V 8000 M71 diesel engine, the main propulsion for the future multi-purpose missile frigate ORP Wicher, being constructed under the Miecznik program.

The keel of Wicher, under construction number B106/1, was laid on January 31 of this year at PGZ Stocznia Wojenna in Gdynia. The launch is scheduled for the third quarter of 2026. Acceptance trials, qualification tests, and the delivery of the completed ship are planned for the years 2028-2030.

Thanks to the signing of the fourth annex on December 15 last year, amending the contract between the Polish Armaments Group and the Armament Agency for designing and delivering of three multi-purpose Miecznik frigates, the contractor was able to contract not only engines but also the C-Guard shipboard direct defense system, the MBDA CAMM Sea Ceptor air defense system, and the Mark 41 Vertical Launch System (Mk 41 VLS) universal launchers.

Press release