Royal Navy unveils Atlantic Bastion at Sea Power

The Ministry of Defence has published Luke Pollard’s speech from the International Sea Power Conference in London, delivered on 8 December 2025. Pollard, the Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, set out how the UK plans to modernise its fleet while keeping the Royal Navy firmly tied into NATO. We’ll explain the key ideas in plain English and show you where the facts come from so you can check them yourself.

The big idea is a “hybrid Navy”. In practice, that means crewed ships and submarines working alongside uncrewed systems, with software helping humans make faster, safer decisions. The First Sea Lord described three connected strands: Atlantic Bastion to secure sensitive waters and sea lines, Atlantic Shield for air defence in the north, and Atlantic Strike to ensure the UK can retaliate if attacked. Think of it as adding smart eyes and extra hands to the fleet rather than replacing sailors.

Atlantic Bastion is the headline change. It links sensors, autonomous vessels and crewed assets into a single watch system designed to spot and track threats-especially near undersea cables and pipelines-across large sea areas. The MOD says industry appetite is high, with public money matched by private investment at roughly four to one, early capability in the water targeted for 2026, and 20 phase‑one contracts worth £4 million leading to up to £35 million within a year. Officials add this programme could support thousands of UK jobs.

Let’s pause for a quick explainer. Interoperability means allied kit works together; interchangeability goes further: using each other’s kit almost as if it were your own. Pollard pointed to recent Royal Navy–Norway cooperation and the decision by Norway to buy British‑designed Type 26 frigates-a £10 billion deal the UK bills as its largest warship export so far. Together, eight UK ships and at least five Norwegian ships are planned to operate in a combined posture in northern waters.

NATO readiness also featured. In November, HMS Prince of Wales and her F‑35 jets were placed under NATO command off Naples as the UK Carrier Strike Group was declared at Full Operating Capability after major exercises in the Mediterranean. This is one way ministers say they are delivering a “NATO‑first” policy laid out in the UK’s Strategic Defence Review. For classrooms: readiness is about being trained, equipped and authorised to act with allies at short notice.

Directed‑energy weapons are the other headline grabber. After successful trials, the government signed a £316 million contract for DragonFire, a ship‑mounted laser intended to defeat fast drones at very low cost per shot-about £10 according to the Royal Navy and Reuters. The MOD says the first installation on a Type 45 destroyer is scheduled by 2027. This doesn’t replace missiles; it adds a cheaper layer for certain threats. Weather and power supply still matter, which is why destroyers are the first testbed.

Pollard linked these capabilities to jobs and local growth. The government’s Defence Industrial Strategy introduces “Defence Growth Deals” worth £250 million across five areas-including Plymouth, South Yorkshire, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland-to speed up skills, infrastructure and innovation. The pitch is simple: defence spending should protect the country and create good work in places that build and maintain the fleet.

You may have seen headlines about a new Plymouth factory making autonomous underwater gliders. That site belongs to Helsing, a European defence tech firm, which opened its first UK “Resilience Factory” on 19 November 2025. Products tested in Scotland’s BUTEC range will feed the Navy’s push for persistent undersea surveillance-exactly the kind of sensing Atlantic Bastion draws on.

Shipbuilding milestones matter too. Last week steel was cut at Appledore for the first of three Fleet Solid Support ships, officially named RFA Resurgent. Pollard’s speech used “Resurgence”, but industry and Navy notices confirm “Resurgent” as the ship’s name-useful media‑literacy homework: always cross‑check names against primary sources. Final assembly moves to Harland & Wolff in Belfast next.

Why the hurry? UK officials say Russian undersea activity is rising, including the spy ship Yantar operating near European waters, which puts data cables and energy lines at risk. The First Sea Lord warned the post‑war advantage in the Atlantic is under strain and called for faster adoption of autonomy and AI to keep the edge. This is the immediate security context for Atlantic Bastion.

What this means for you if you teach or study this topic: a hybrid Navy is simply people plus machines working together; interoperability is “our kit talks to allies”; interchangeability is “we can swap and use each other’s kit”. Atlantic Bastion is a stitched‑together set of sensors and vessels acting like an early‑warning web for what moves above and below the waves. Lasers like DragonFire add a low‑cost option for swatting drones so expensive missiles can be saved for harder targets.

Finally, the money. Pollard told the conference the government had added £5 billion to this year’s defence budget and is aiming for spending of 2.5% of GDP by 2027, with ambitions for 3% in the next Parliament and 3.5% by 2030. Whether those targets hold will depend on growth, inflation and future political choices-but the direction of travel is clear: more investment in naval hard power, delivered faster, and designed to plug straight into NATO.