Swedish firm Saab has announced the start of construction for Poland’s much-awaited signals intelligence (SIGNIT) vessels.
A keel-laying ceremony was held yesterday at Remontowa shipyard in northern Poland, with representatives from the Polish Armament Agency and the Polish Navy in attendance.
The milestone is part of a 620-million euro ($644 million) contract signed in 2022 for two new SIGNIT ships to support Warsaw’s maritime operations.
The boats are expected to boost the information gathering capability of the European nation amid emerging threats.
“Naval intelligence ship systems are advanced platforms that need to be highly reliable and available,” Saab senior vice president Mats Wicksell said.
“The keel laying ceremony today is an important milestone in the shipbuilding process and we appreciate the cooperation with our Polish customer.”
Poland’s new SIGNIT ships will integrate advanced mission systems and “world-leading” sensors for improved performance.
Increased Investments in Defense
Apart from the new SIGNIT vessels, Poland is also set to receive two airborne early warning and control aircraft from Saab.
Warsaw has pushed ahead with its planned purchase worth 600 million Swedish kronor ($58 million).
The country also ordered 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft from South Korea to fill its strategic air defense needs.
“The FA-50 are of the same generation as the F-16, which will significantly strengthen the Polish Air Force,” Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said last year.