Maritime 5G Standalone Demonstrated by Ericsson, Leonardo and Italian Navy

Maritime Standalone 5G Proves Viable for Shipboard Operations

On Feb. 16, 2026, Ericsson, together with Leonardo and the Italian Navy, completes prolonged live maritime trials that demonstrate long‑range 5G Standalone (SA) communications and on‑board connectivity in continuous day‑and‑night operations. Ericsson installs a fully self‑contained end‑to‑end 5G SA network on the amphibious landing ship San Giorgio, using Ericsson Ultra Compact Core and its Massive MIMO radio access products, while 5G SA CPE is deployed on the Multi‑Purpose Combat Ship Raimondo Montecuccoli. The exercise, part of the EDF 5G COMPAD project and run during the Italian Navy’s OPEX 2‑25 in the Gulf of Taranto, validates that a compact, ship‑borne core and RAN can support extended at‑sea operations without reliance on shore infrastructure.

The trial combines Ericsson connectivity with Leonardo’s NINE encryption and AI Brain platform to exchange classified and unclassified data securely and to provide full situational awareness from the Combat Management System. Crews stream real‑time video from 12 unmanned systems, demonstrating simultaneous encrypted low‑latency feeds and AI‑driven processing for command‑and‑control. Measured performance covers latency, throughput, resilience to interference and encryption robustness, showing the network can sustain mission‑critical services and sensor fusion on board naval vessels.

Results indicate a unified 5G SA network optimises spectrum use compared with multiple standalone communications that operate on unlicensed, overlapping bands and face interference risks. Ericsson presents the trial as a milestone for its mission‑critical, dual‑use 5G portfolio; executives point to Italy’s central Mediterranean role and an exclusive economic zone of more than 500,000 square kilometres as a case where ship‑borne 5G can materially strengthen naval communications and operational reach.

Implications for naval fleets and multinational collaboration

Partners say the exercise sets the stage for scaling 5G SA across larger EEZ areas and improving interoperability with allied forces. Follow‑on trials are planned in 2026 to test wider coverage, deployment logistics and spectrum management when connecting multiple vessels and shore nodes.

Commercial and civil maritime prospects

Beyond defense, the demonstration highlights potential civilian use cases such as port operations, remote vessel monitoring and high‑bandwidth services for maritime industry players. Ericsson and Leonardo frame the work as advancing both national security and commercial maritime connectivity.