By Arie Egozi, Autonomy Global – Ambassador for Israel
German naval prime contractor thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) has signed a strategic framework agreement with Israel’s SpearUAV to integrate the Viper 750 sub-to-air loitering Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) on submarines and other underwater platforms. The cooperation is designed to add an organic, rapidly deployable ISR and loitering strike layer to TKMS-built submarines and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs), without compromising their stealth.
The agreement creates a structure for long-term technological, commercial, and operational collaboration around “sub-to-air” loitering capabilities tailored to underwater defense products. It aligns with TKMS’s strategy of turning every manned platform into a carrier for unmanned systems, extending the company’s existing work to retrofit submarines for UAV launch and recovery.
The cornerstone of the deal involves SpearUAV’s Viper 750, an encapsulated loitering UAS purpose-built for launch from submerged platforms. Packed in a small capsule compatible with standard submarine launchers, Viper 750 is expelled underwater. Once the capsule reaches the surface, it opens and the drone automatically transitions to flight to deliver real-time ISR and targeting data while the submarine remains hidden below the surface.
According to SpearUAV, the 3 kg-class Viper 750 carries a modular payload of around 1 kg, offers a range on the order of 10–14 km, and can stay aloft for up to 45 minutes. This enables extended surveillance, battle damage assessment or loitering strike support for joint forces. The system is AI-driven and designed for autonomous routing and beyond-line-of-sight situational awareness to give commanders a new multi-domain tool that connects sub-surface, surface and aerial pictures into a single operational view.
Executives from both companies frame the cooperation as a milestone in underwater warfare, as navies seek to add organic unmanned capabilities to high-value platforms such as submarines. For Israel and NATO-aligned customers already operating TKMS submarines, the framework opens a path to retrofit fleets with encapsulated aerial munitions that extend sensor reach and engagement options without exposing the platform.
By pairing TKMS’s position as Europe’s only fully integrated maritime defense system provider with SpearUAV’s portfolio of multi-mission loitering munitions, the partners aim to set a reference architecture for future sub-to-air drone operations. The cooperation is expected to influence upcoming naval procurement decisions as operators look for scalable, off-the-shelf solutions to integrate unmanned aerial effects into undersea concepts of operation.