Polish Navy's future signals intelligence ship floated out

A future signals intelligence (SIGINT) ship ordered by the Polish Navy was launched during a ceremony in Gdynia on Tuesday, July 1.

The future ORP Jerzy Różycki belongs to a class of SIGINT ships designed by Swedish defence shipbuilder Saab. HSwMS Artemis, the lead ship of the class, was handed over to the Swedish Royal Navy in 2023.

The steel-hulled ship honours Jerzy Różycki, a Polish mathematician who helped decipher the code of Nazi Germany's Enigma wartime encryption machine.

Upon completion, the SIGINT ship will have a length of 74.6 metres, a beam of 14 metres, a draught of 3.8 metres, a displacement of approximately 2,200 tonnes, and 35 cabins housing a total of 40 berths for the crew. Four diesel generators will propel the vessel to speed of up to 14.4 knots.

Saab is the prime contractor for the SIGINT ships being built for Poland. Remontowa Shipbuilding is responsible for the vessels' construction while other Polish companies will supply many of the essential mission systems.