European naval defence industry meets as threats drive fleet upgrades

By Florence Loeve

PARIS, Nov 3 (Reuters) – Shipbuilders, missile makers and drone manufacturers showcased their wares at an arms fair starting near Paris on Tuesday, as European governments, doubting the United States as a defence ally and alarmed by Russian aggression, rush to bolster navies.

The increasing use of drones at sea, attacks on critical undersea infrastructure and the targeting of commercial shipping in conflicts including in the Middle East mark a shift in the challenges that European naval forces face.

Last month, NATO said it would send more maritime patrol aircraft and drones to the Black Sea in response to a spate of deadly drone attacks on cargo vessels off the Romanian and Bulgarian coasts linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Organisers expect a record number of exhibitors at the November 3-6 Euronaval defence exhibition, rising 45% from the previous edition two years ago. The market for military and paramilitary shipbuilding was worth $122 billion globally in 2024-2025, up 50% from two years prior, the organisers say. 

DRONES A FOCUS OF ATTENTION

Defence groups including France’s Naval Group, Germany’s TKMS and European missile maker MBDA are showing products ranging from warships to combat software and naval ammunition.

Drones were likely to attract particular attention, said Rear Admiral Guillaume Merveilleux du Vignaux, Euronaval’s general commissioner.

Drones at sea have various military uses, from autonomous underwater systems monitoring undersea cables or looking for mines, to surface ones used for surveillance or destruction on impact, specialists say.

One such product, a suicide drone, so named because it destroys itself once used, to help protect ports and vessels, was unveiled by defence group KNDS and French startup SeaOwl.

Speaking at the show, French Defence Minister Catherine Vautrin pledged to set up an initiative to help large manufacturers and startups collaborate further on developing sea drones.

The French government launched a similar “pact” for aerial drones in 2024, which led to collaborations including one between the French carmaker Renault and drone manufacturer Turgis et Gaillard to build a long-range suicide drone.

Beyond simply buying drones, officials say the challenge is to connect these new systems to ships or submarines built years or decades ago. 

Operating drones at sea also presents technical difficulties not encountered on land, from movement at sea to interference created by ships’ radar or their steel hulls.

“A ship at sea moves a lot,” a French Navy official said last week at a press conference. “All of the GPS-based systems need to take that into account.”

Military officials and industry executives say a parallel challenge is identifying who is behind attacks as unclaimed operations at sea, in particular involving drones, become more common. 

Industry experts say they are now betting on AI to help with that. “AI will enable important progress” to handle big quantities of data captured by radars and sensors, Merveilleux du Vignaux said.     

(Reporting by Florence Loève; Editing by Aidan Lewis)