BAE Systems tests new Adaptable Deck Launcher to increase US Navy's missile capacity and allow reloading at sea.

BAE Systems completed the first live-fire test of its Adaptable Deck Launcher (ADL) at China Lake, California, advancing an above-deck missile system designed to expand U.S. Navy warship firepower. Developed under a U.S. Department of War contract for the NATO Seasparrow Project Office, the modular launcher integrates Mk 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) electronics and logistics to fire Evolved SeaSparrow Missiles (ESSM) from inclined canisters. The configuration bypasses deep hull penetration requirements, enabling frigates, amphibious vessels, and unmanned surface vessels to increase missile capacity while conducting at-sea replenishment.

The fixed-angle Adaptable Deck Launcher (ADL) accommodates Mk 25 Quad-Pack canisters carrying four ESSM interceptors per cell across both tactical- and strike-length variants, providing supplementary missile firepower and enabling at-sea rearming without requiring deep vertical launch wells. (Picture source: BAE Systems)

BAE Systems announced the completion of the first live-fire test of its Adaptable Deck Launcher (ADL) at China Lake, California, on October 27, 2026, advancing a missile launching system designed to expand the U.S. Navy's missile capacity per ship and simplify reloading at sea. Developed under a U.S. Department of War contract for the NATO Seasparrow Project Office (NSPO), the ADL uses fixed-angle, low-elevation missile canisters mounted above deck, unlike the Mk 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS), whose cells extend up to 7.7 m into a warship. Nevertheless, the ADL launcher remains compatible with the Mk 41's missile canisters, electronics, and logistics equipment, with current development concentrated on the Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM) Block I and Block II.

As each Mk 25 Quad-Pack canister carries four ESSMs, four ADL cells would hypothetically accommodate 16 missiles, and an eight-cell configuration 32. Intended applications include frigates, aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, Littoral Combat Ships, and medium unmanned surface vessels. For now, the ADL's main operational advantage would be the ability to replenish missile canisters at sea using shipboard handling equipment, potentially reducing the need for warships to leave operational areas after exhausting part of their defensive inventory. The October 2026 firing follows development work dating to May 2018, when BAE Systems had established tactical-length and strike-length ADL designs compatible with Mk 41 missile canisters and launch-control electronics.

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Earlier proof-of-concept testing successfully fired an ESSM from an enclosed Mk 25 Quad-Pack canister, validating missile departure, exhaust gas management, structural support, and operation with a modified Mk 41 launch-control system. BAE Systems, also responsible for the mechanical design of the Mk 41 VLS family, retained these interfaces while developing a launcher structure that can be installed independently of a ship's internal vertical-launch compartments. Although the original design accommodated canisters associated with SM-2, SM-3, SM-6, Tomahawk, and VL-ASROC missiles, current qualification efforts concentrate on ESSMs. The number of missiles fired during the live-fire, their exact variant, the firing interval, launch angle, measured missile trajectory, and post-launch performance were not disclosed.

No production contract or shipboard acceptance schedule has been established, leaving the ADL at a stage where only the launcher functionality has been demonstrated. The tactical-length version of the ADL measures 7.214 m long, 3.861 m wide and 3.073 m high, with an empty mass of 8,210 kg and a rectangular footprint of 27.85 m². The larger strike-length version measures 8.077 m by 3.861 m by 3.378 m, weighs 9,185 kg, and occupies 31.19 m², which represents an 11.9% increase in empty mass and a 12% increase in footprint. A single module requires 440 V AC, 400 Hz, three-phase power rated at 40 kW, supplemented by 115 V AC circuits rated at 2 kW for lighting, 4 kW for backup power, and 5 kW for launch control. Cooling and heating requirements are each 10,000 Btu/hour, equivalent to 2.93 kW thermal, with air recirculation of 15.86 m³/min.

Mk 41-derived control electronics weigh another 1,950 kg. The listed electrical ratings total 51 kW, although backup power is not necessarily used simultaneously with primary circuits. Complete installation mass must additionally account for loaded canisters, foundations and protective structures, while smaller ships may require electrical conversion equipment and deck reinforcement. As said earlier, the ADL's potential ammunition capacity is determined by its compatibility with individual Mk 41 missile canisters. For instance, the ESSM Block I and II use the four-missile Mk 25 Quad-Pack canister, weighing 2,640 kg loaded in tactical length or 2,921 kg in strike length. SM-2 Block II/III variants use the single-missile Mk 13 canister weighing 1,393 kg or 1,674 kg, while the SM-2 Block IV uses the strike-length Mk 21 Mod 0 weighing 2,803 kg.

For their part, the SM-3 Block I/IA/IB missiles use the Mk 21 Mod 2 weighing 2,876 kg, the SM-3 Block IIA uses the Mk 29 weighing 2,880 kg, and the SM-6 Block I/IA uses the Mk 21 Mod 4 weighing 2,858 kg. The Tomahawk Block III/IV requires the strike-length Mk 14 weighing 2,785 kg, while the VL-ASROC uses the Mk 15 weighing 1,479 kg or 1,760 kg. Earlier ADL compatibility provisions also included the Harpoon, the LRASM and the Naval Strike Missile, with strike-length loaded weights of 1,787 kg, 2,826 kg and 1,461 kg, respectively, although these weapons were not then integrated into Mk 41. For the current ESSM-focused configuration, the practical arithmetic is more straightforward: four Mk 25-equipped cells provide 16 missiles, eight provide 32, and 16 would accommodate 64.

The Mk 41's standard eight-cell tactical module occupies a deck opening of 2.616 m by 3.429 m, equivalent to 8.97 m², and extends 6.756 m into the hull, while strike-length installations require 7.6 to 7.7 m of vertical depth. The tactical ADL instead occupies 27.85 m² above deck, increasing the rectangular installation footprint by a factor of 3.1 compared with the Mk 41 opening, although the unspecified ADL module cell count prevents a valid per-cell density comparison. This arrangement avoids deep launcher wells that can interfere with machinery spaces, bulkheads and internal passageways, making additional missile installations possible on ships not originally designed for VLS systems. The trade-off involves exterior deck occupation, structural reinforcement, weight distribution, rocket-exhaust clearances, and increased above-deck volume. A protective enclosure is intended to reduce radar signature and shield canisters, but no quantified armor protection or radar cross-section reduction has been established.

Operational maturity remains another distinction: the Mk 41 has operated since 1986 and accumulated thousands of successful missile firings, whereas the ADL has not established equivalent fleet-level reliability. However, the ADL's at-sea replenishment could change how long a warship stays in the operational area during sustained operations. Conventional Mk 41 reloading requires lifting and aligning heavy canisters before lowering them into vertical cells extending into the hull, whereas ADL positions the canister interface above deck for access by shipboard handling equipment. If 24 missiles were fired from six fully expended quad-packs, eight interceptors would remain, but restoring the original inventory would still require six canisters weighing 15.84 tonnes. These calculations exclude lifting equipment, packaging and transfer arrangements, while actual replenishment depends on replacement stocks, crane capacity, crew procedures and sea conditions.

The U.S. Navy is also developing the Transferrable Rearming Mechanism (TRAM), demonstrated aboard USS Chosin (CG 65) with USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11) on October 11, 2024, followed by USS Farragut (DDG 99) trials in 2025. However, the TRAM seeks to replenish existing Mk 41 cells while underway, whereas the ADL seeks to make missile canisters more accessible through an above-deck arrangement. The number of additional missiles that the ADL could provide varies considerably by ship class and existing armament. The Littoral Combat Ships, which lack Mk 41 cells, could theoretically receive 16 ESSMs through four ADL cells or 32 through eight, provided their radar, fire-control software, and electrical systems were compatible. On a frigate with 16 existing launch cells, four additional ADL cells would increase the physical cell count by 25%, while eight would increase it by 50%.

Similarly, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer carrying 90 or 96 Mk 41 cells would increase its total to 98 or 104 with eight supplementary ADL cells, representing 8.9% or 8.3% more cells while potentially adding 32 ESSMs without diminishing SM-2, SM-6, Tomahawk, or VL-ASROC inventories. Aircraft carriers and amphibious ships could similarly receive supplementary ESSM launchers without constructing new below-deck VLS compartments, subject to the ADL's footprint and available deck space. Compact two-, four-, and eight-cell arrangements, including a containerized version under development, could equip medium unmanned surface vessels, although their displacement, electrical supply, stability, and communications systems remain limiting factors.

The potential operational contribution of the ADL is illustrated by U.S. Navy missile expenditure in the Red Sea, where more than 200 defensive missiles were fired against nearly 400 aerial threats between November 2023 and January 2025, including approximately 120 SM-2, 80 SM-6, and 20 ESSM and SM-3 missiles combined. This expenditure highlights the constraints imposed by finite inventories aboard Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, whose Mk 41 cells must accommodate air defense, ballistic missile defense, land-attack, and anti-submarine weapons. As of May 1, 2026, the U.S. Navy operated 291 battle force ships with approximately 9,100 VLS cells across surface combatants and submarines.

In 2026, the Congressional Budget Office examined the broader missile-capacity problem, proposing to add 144 to 640 missile cells by 2030 at estimated costs of $1.5 billion to $4.3 billion (excluding missiles), and identified 107 existing ships without ship-launched missile capability. One expansion option involved 43 existing vessels, 11 reactivated ships and 15 additional Littoral Combat Ships, producing 69 additional missile-carrying ships, 264 large-missile cells and 376 Naval Strike Missiles through several launcher types. In a prolonged Indo-Pacific conflict involving China, the ADL could consequently distribute additional missiles across more hulls while reducing dependence on port-based replenishment, particularly for ships operating far from established naval facilities.

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Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, South Korea, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.