Austal Australia converts patrol boat into unmanned vessel
Austal Australia is converting the former patrol boat HMAS Maitland into an unmanned platform. (Photo: Department of Defence)
The Royal Australian Navy is involved in converting a patrol boat into an unmanned vessel, while it also seeks new workboats and another LMV-M contender reveals its landing craft design for the Australian Army.
Austal Australia is transforming the decommissioned HMAS Maitland, an Armidale-class patrol boat, into an unmanned platform at its shipyard in Henderson, Western Australia.
This work is occurring under the Patrol Boat Autonomy Trial (PBAT), which is seeing collaboration between Austal, the Trusted Autonomous Systems Defence Cooperative Research Centre and the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) Warfare Innovation Navy Branch.
Austal has also subcontracted L3Harris to aid with the autonomous technology on the vessel.
Austal stated: ‘The trial will establish robotic, automated and autonomous elements on a patrol boat, providing a proof-of-concept demonstrator, for optionally crewed or autonomous operations for
Already have an account? Log in
Want to keep reading this article?
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Greece’s newly commissioned FDI frigate deployed to Cyprus]()
Greece’s newly commissioned FDI frigate deployed to Cyprus
The recent naval modernisation efforts by the Hellenic Navy have been bolstered by the acquisition of advanced Naval Group frigates, the first of which was delivered in December 2025 and is now playing a crucial role in the latest Middle East conflict.
-
![US Navy SPY-6 approaches FRP with Raytheon already having “a hot production line”]()
US Navy SPY-6 approaches FRP with Raytheon already having “a hot production line”
Jen Gauthier, Raytheon’s VP of Naval Systems and Sustainment, told Shephard that the company is awaiting the US Navy’s green light to move “fully into full-rate production”.
-
![Ireland releases maritime strategy as it looks to new naval bases and stronger partnerships]()
Ireland releases maritime strategy as it looks to new naval bases and stronger partnerships
Ireland has a maritime area ten times the size of its land mass but has a limited naval capacity and faces an ongoing threat to critical underwater infrastructure. A new strategy is looking to address the challenge.
-
![How the Golden Fleet will change the US Navy acquisition process]()
How the Golden Fleet will change the US Navy acquisition process
The procurement of the future USN Golden Fleet is planned to be less bureaucratic than previous strategies, involving AI-enabled designs and scheduling tools to increase productivity and avoid delays.
