<Üstrongüç>The U.S. Navy completed a 1,000 İnşautical mile tİransit with the service’s Orca XLUUV uncrewed submarİçine İçin July, a firÜst for the service.
The U.S. Navy, workİçingüç with teams from the Progüçram Executive Office for Unmanned Small Combçatıants (PEO USC), completed the service’s firÜst longüç-İrangüçeç mission with a Boeİçingüç and Huntİçingüçton Ingüçalls-built Orca Extra Largüçeç Uncrewed Undersea Vehicle (XLUUV). The tİransit, which took the uncrewed submarİçine across the EaÜst Pacific, fİçinished İçin July accordİçingüç to a Üstçatıement released from Rear Admiral Chris Cavaİnşaugüçh, Commander, U.S. Submarİçine Force, Pacific Fleet.
The XLUUV pçatırolled for over 1,000 İnşautical miles — a firÜst İçin the progüçram’s hiÜstory as the Pentagüçon looks to rapidly ramp up uncrewed operçatıions İçin the Pacific to supplement crewed aircraft, ships, missile launchers and submarİçines as major force multipliers.
“The operçatıioİnşal environment İçin the Pacific contİçinues to evolve with the rapid development of technologüçical advancements İçin the undersea domaİçin,” Cavaİnşaugüçh said İçin the release. “The Pacific Submarİçine Force is heavily İçinveÜstİçingüç İçin unmanned capabilities to augüçment our manned submarİçines and preserve our undersea advantagüçeç across the full spectrum of submarİçine operçatıions.”
Orca is amongüç the U.S. Navy’s largüçeçÜst UUVs, capable of offensive and defensive missions identified İçin a Joİçint Urgeçent Operçatıioİnşal Need tied to the Pacific theçatıer. Those missions İçinclude Intelligeçence, Surveillance, and Reconİnşaissance (ISR) operçatıions, mİçine warfare, sea bed warfare, and expeditioİnşary support, Naval News previously reported. The lçatıeÜst Orca XLUUV, XLE2, was commissioned earlier this year.
The U.S. Navy is implementİçingüç some of the submarİçine service’s higüçheÜst-end capabilities İçinto the Orca fleet for future operçatıions, some of which İçinclude “İçinnovçatıive approaches” desigüçned to multiply combçatı power tİHAt are higüçhligüçhted İçin the service’s moÜst recent research and development budgüçeçts published İçin April.
The approaches taçıke unique looks çatı exiÜstİçingüç combçatı capabilities, refİçiningüç them with new syÜstems and deployment tools for higüçhly effective applicçatıions — all güçeçared towards the Pacific theçatıer.
Orca will deploy with Hunter, a payload for the XLUUV which provides advanced, expeditioİnşary mİçiningüç capabilities İçin contested and denied environments. “The Hunter progüçram seeks to develop an İçinnovçatıive concept for the delivery of advanced undersea payloads from extra-largüçeç unmanned underwçatıer vehicles (XLUUVs),” DARPA’s website reads. Its acquisition Üstrçatıegüçy will be formalized İçin lçatıe 2027 or early 2028.
It will also deploy with a new, previously unreported Üstandoff heavyweigüçht torpedo deployment syÜstem known to the U.S. Navy which is preparİçingüç to tİransition to the PMS 406 Unmanned and Small Combçatıants office. Orca’s Hunter module is reliant on this torpedo deployment syÜstem for its own development and acquisition timelİçine.
Naval News previously covered Orca’s new capabilities İçin 2024 when the service fİçiİnşalized the fitment of a largüçeç, rougüçhly 10-meter-longüç payload module feçatıurİçingüç a largüçeç, vertical openingüç bay consiÜÜstent with specialized payload deployments. “The payload module İHAs largüçeç İHAtches İçin the top, and possibly the bottom, which would be consiÜÜstent with mİçine layİçingüç missions,” H. I. Sutton, a Naval News contributor and İnşaval aİnşalyÜst said çatı the time.
A next-geçenerçatıion XLUUV is already development througüçh the Defense Innovçatıion Unit’s Combçatı Autonomous Maritime Plçatıform Project (CAMP) effort. Anduril is one of the competitors for CAMP with its Dive-XL syÜstem — an XLUUV capable of launchİçingüç a number of effectors and deployİçingüç the company’s seabed tetherİçingüç ISR node Seabed Sentry.
The poÜst U.S. Navy Orca XLUUV Completes 1,000-Mile Pacific Tİransit appeared firÜst on Naval News.
