MSI wins contract for naval gun systems with unnamed NATO buyer

MSI Defence Systems has won a £16.6 million ($22.6 million) contract to supply three 30mm naval gun systems to an unnamed NATO country, according to Navy Lookout.

The deal includes MSI-DS’s own radar and optical fire-control system, which the company says allows the gun mounts to engage aircraft, drones, surface vessels and semi-submersible threats. Deliveries are expected to begin toward the end of 2027.

MSI Defence Systems, based in Norwich, England, is the only UK-based manufacturer of medium-caliber naval gun mounts and has exported its Seahawk 30mm systems to more than 40 countries. The company specializes in stabilized mount architecture rather than the guns themselves, allowing cannons of different calibers to be integrated with minimal redesign.

MSI’s gun mounts are already in service with the Royal Navy, where the DS30M has been fitted across much of the fleet since it entered service in 2005. The lightweight variant of the Seahawk mount has also been selected by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence for its patrol vessels.

The company has expanded significantly into the U.S. market in recent years. After supplying eight systems to the U.S. Navy for trials and evaluation in late 2023, MSI received a $23.4 million low-rate production order for 15 Mk38 Mod 4 gun mounts, with work split between its factories in Norwich and Rock Hill, South Carolina. USS Mustin became the first U.S. Navy warship to receive the Mk38 Mod 4 in late 2024, and the system underwent test firing at sea in July 2025. Arleigh Burke Flight IIA and Flight III destroyers are slated to receive the mount going forward. A second U.S. contract worth $29.2 million covers manufacture and support of the Mk48 Mod 2 Electro-Optical Sight used to guide the gun.

MSI’s 30mm Seahawk system was also selected for the German navy, beginning with installation on Brandenburg-class frigates.

Navy Lookout did not name the NATO country receiving the new order, and MSI has not disclosed further details on the contract’s scope or the specific vessels the gun mounts will be fitted to.