At DSEI UK 2025, Leidos unveiled its Sea Dagger, a next-generation Commando Insertion Craft (CIC) concept developed for the Royal Navy. Naval News spoke to Adam Clarke, senior vice president and chief executive at Leidos UK & Europe, to find out more about Sea Dagger.
The Commando Force programme is designed to transform UK amphibious forces into a more agile and lethal capability optimised for persistent forward deployment in a range of combat and non-combat roles. Key to this is a recapitalisation programme intended to bring new equipment and shipping into service in support of littoral strike operations.
As part of this investment plan, the CIC programme is intended to deliver a new high-speed, low-signature craft that can deliver Royal Marine Commando teams and their equipment from ships positioned some distance offshore. The MoD’s procurement pipeline document last year indicated a requirement for around 20 CIC craft, with a budget of just over £190 million earmarked to cover design, manufacture, and support.
Top-level CIC requirements previously promulgated by the MoD call for a medium-lift craft that can carry a strike team and a small vehicle to the shore from a stand-off range (circa 150 nautical miles) at high speed (25+ knots) with a low probability of detection. One major design consideration is the ability to transport marines in an environment where they land on shore ‘fit to fight’.
Capable of exceeding 40 knots, Sea Dagger is the result of a collaborative development effort between Leidos Naval Architects and military subject matter experts, the Royal Navy, and UKCF. The design builds on more than 30 years of fast-craft expertise and incorporates Leidos technology, including Trusted Mission AI, autonomous systems and integrated weaponry. Operational resilience is central to the concept, with a focus on readiness, availability, maintainability and repairability. The platform is designed to continue delivering its mission under stress, disruption or attack for an enduring presence in contested environments.
Aligned with AUKUS Pillar 2 maritime autonomy objectives and the UK Strategic Defence Review’s vision to move to warfighting readiness and increasing lethality, Sea Dagger helps ensure the UKCF can respond quickly with the tools, training and systems needed to face the evolving threats and demands of modern conflict.
Sea Dagger addresses the most pressing challenge faced by specialised units operating in coastal and shallow-water environments around the world. Unlike historical near-shore landing craft, Sea Dagger delivers a unique combination of naval architecture and high-technology sensors, weapons and C2 (command-and-control) capabilities shaped by the realities of warfare in modern conflicts.
Adam Clarke, senior vice president and chief executive at Leidos UK & Europe said, “Sea Dagger represents a pivotal step in equipping the UK Commando Force with the capability to operate with greater agility, survivability and intent in a complex and congested maritime environment. The Leidos design reflects our commitment to delivering resilient, future-ready platforms that can adapt to the complexities of modern warfare, ensuring capability, availability and operational advantage from day one. I am delighted that Leidos is at the forefront of shaping the maritime marketplace, domestically and internationally.”
