The Royal Navy has awarded Saab a £15 million contract for Sea Giraffe 1X radars on Kraken Technology’s K3 Scout uncrewed surface vessels, according to Defence Industry Europe’s report. Saab UK and Kraken tested the system ashore and at sea before the award, with the companies reporting that it could detect, track and classify airborne targets in challenging maritime conditions.
That establishes a defined sensing task, not a demonstrated autonomous air-defence engagement capability. The radar is intended to give the boats an airborne-surveillance role while they operate independently or alongside crewed ships. The source reports that the contract includes further development and integration into Royal Navy operations, so the award should not be treated as proof that the complete radar-equipped capability is already deployed across the fleet.
The wider operating context is the Royal Navy’s newly commissioned 1st Autonomous Squadron. Navy Lookout reports that the squadron has initially been equipped with Rattler and Scout uncrewed surface vessels and that human judgment and command accountability remain central to their use. Its account says one Scout carried a Saab Giraffe 1X radar while other boats carried counter-drone interceptors, but it does not establish that the radar-equipped boat independently selected or engaged targets.
The K3 Scout therefore appears to be moving from trials toward an operationally integrated role, with modular payloads allowing the Navy to re-role vessels for surveillance or counter-drone missions. What remains unverified in the available reporting is the radar’s detection range, classification performance against particular threats, and the precise division of authority between onboard autonomy and remote human operators.