NATO Will Develop Next ESSM Missile Variant

The NATO Seasparrow Project Office announces the start of work on a new variant intended to replace the long-produced ESSM Block I and ESSM Block II missiles. In response to growing concerns that these missiles may fall short against modern air and missile threats from Russia and China, the new version will be designated as the “Next Significant Variant.”

It is stated that the new missile to be developed will retain the 25 cm diameter of the existing ESSM missiles, allowing it to be quad-packed into the Mk 41 vertical launch system as in ESSM Block I and ESSM Block II, and that it will also be compatible with the existing Mk 29 launchers.

The ESSM Block II, currently in production, can reach speeds of up to Mach 4 and intercept targets at ranges of up to 50 km. However, the increasing use of anti-ship missiles and low-cost drones, as seen recently in the Red Sea and Ukraine, has heightened the need for more effective interception systems, prompting NATO to act.

In the announcement, the NATO Seasparrow Project Office states: “Drivers for development include stressing simultaneous engagement scenarios, the need to develop fully releasable technologies using open architecture standards for all consortium partners to openly share, and the need to maintain capability with current consortium systems to the greatest extent possible while limiting ship support.”

Established in 1968, the NATO Seasparrow Consortium has worked for over five decades to provide navies with effective self-defense against the most serious threats. The consortium is made up of 12 nations including Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, Türkiye, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, the United States, Portugal and Spain, and it collaborates on the design and production of the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow and RIM-162 ESSM variants.