Kraken and Saab integrate Giraffe 1X radar on K3 Scout USV

A computer-generated image of a Giraffe 1X radar integrated in the modular payload bay of a K3 Scout USV, issued in a Saab UK press release on 5 October 2026. (Saab UK)

Kraken Technologies and Saab UK announced the integration of a Saab Giraffe 1X radar into the mission payload bay of a K3 Scout unmanned surface vehicle (USV), according to press releases from both companies published on 5 October 2026.

The two companies intend to deliver an autonomous seeker vessel for the naval domain to help protect shipping, ports, offshore energy assets, and critical national infrastructure (CNI). The prototype provides the user with an early warning capability to detect aerial threats, particularly small airborne targets such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Saab's Giraffe 1X three-dimensional radar (weighing nearly 150 kg) has principally been marketed and deployed as a land-based radar for vehicles, fixed structures, or deployable mounts. But this maritime variant is still in its experimental stages after less than seven months in development, according to Saab UK's managing director Andy Fraser. The partners have undertaken sea trials to test the radar's performance in maritime conditions. The two companies are “satisfied” having met their undisclosed objectives, said the director of AUKUS and Naval at Saab UK Adrian Fryer.

The main challenge for a successful USV seeker of this kind will be how the two partners mitigate the disruptive impact of the wind, waves, and swell of the water on radar tracking at different sea states.