Dr Lee Willett
While submarines have deployed with UUVs in the past, the TTL&R option allows for ease of system deployment and retrieval, increasing capability, reach, and manoeuvre in the undersea domain.
Vice Admiral Rob Gaucher, the US Navy’s Commander Submarine Forces, told the Naval Leaders’ Combined Naval Event 2024 (CNE 24) conference in Farnborough, UK in late May:
“We’re going to install UUVs on a submarine, USS Delaware, starting in a couple of weeks, and they will deploy by the end of the year,”
“We’re already looking at who’s going to be next to start installing, so that we continuously have a submarine-operated vehicle,” Vice Adm Gaucher added.
Delaware is a Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine (SSN). Commissioned in April 2020, the Block III Virginia boat is the 18th of a planned force level of 66 Virginia hulls.
Vice Adm Gaucher explained that delivering a fully integrated SSN-based UUV capability is a key development priority, as part of building the USN submarine force’s future operational posture. “From my perspective, we are not operating UUVs enough in the submarine force,” he added.
This capability development process will be accelerating in 2024, Vice Adm Gaucher said. Delaware’s deployment will involve an HII REMUS 600 UUV. This type of UUV was launched from the Delaware’s torpedo tube and was recovered the same way during a test in late 2023.
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