What's next for the Pentagon after the Replicator programme?
Although the Replicator initiative has made several accomplishments, there are still multiple gaps to plug across the US Department of Defense (DoD) and its services.
Sea Hunter in new performance trials
Leidos has completed initial performance trials of Sea Hunter, a technology demonstration vessel being developed for DARPA's Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) programme, the company announced on 25 July.
The at-sea tests were conducted off the coast of San Diego, California. According to Leidos, the 132ft trimaran met or surpassed all performance objectives for fuel consumption, acceleration/deceleration, seakeeping, stability, manoeuvrability and speed. The tests also demonstrated the reliability of the mechanical systems in an open-ocean environment.
Sea Hunter has been designed to operate for extended periods at sea with no person on board and only sparse supervisory control throughout deployment. The initial vessel tests required a pilot on board the ship; future tests are planned with no personnel on board.
Tests in the coming months are scheduled to include testing of sensors and the vessel's autonomy suite, maritime collision regulations compliance, and proof-of-concept demonstrations for US Navy missions.
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