USN asks Hydroid for MK 18 payload upgrade hardware
Huntington Ingalls Industries underwater technology subsidiary Hydroid is providing Increment II payload upgrade hardware to the USN in support of the MK 18 Mod 2 Unmanned Underwater Vehicle programme.
Work on the $74.7 million IDIQ contract, awarded by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, is scheduled for completion in April 2026.
Based on the Remus 600, the USN MK 18 is a highly configurable vehicle with a maximum operating depth of 600m.
Deployable from vessels as small as an 11m rigid hull inflatable boat and with a maximum mission duration of 24h, the vehicle can be outfitted with a broad range of sensors to meet the requirements of missions such as organic mine countermeasure, hydrographic survey, area search, surveillance and reconnaissance.
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