Orca (AUV)

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The Orca is an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) that is under development by Boeing and Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) for the United States Navy.

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The Orca dates back to September 2017, when the Navy issued contracts worth about US$40 million each to Boeing, which had partnered earlier in the year with HII to build uncrewed submarines, and Lockheed Martin to develop competing designs for an extra-large unmanned undersea vehicle (XLUUV [lower-alpha 1] ) capable of autonomous operation on missions up to several months in duration. [2] In February 2019, the Navy awarded the Boeing/HII consortium a $43 million contract to begin work on building four of their XLUUVs, the design of which would be based on Boeing's earlier AUV Echo Voyager . [3] The following month, the Navy added a fifth vehicle to the order, with the total value of the contract reaching $274.4 million. [4] Orca deliveries were planned to be completed by the end of 2022. [4] The Navy took delivery of the first Orca in December, 2023. [5]

The basic Orca design shares a 51 feet (16 m) length with Echo Voyager, but the Orca will incorporate a more modular construction, primarily for the capability to be built with an additional payload module of up to 34 feet (10 m) long and a capacity of 8 tonnes (8,000 kg) for a total length of 85 feet (26 m). [3] [6] The Navy specified the ability to adapt the Orca platform according to mission, with the ability for surveillance, submerged, surface, and electronic combat, and minesweeping. [6] [2] The vessel will be powered by a hybrid diesel/lithium-ion battery system, which powers the Orca by battery while submerged and recharges the batteries with diesel generators while surfaced. [2] Maximum speed is 8 knots (15 km/h), though the typical service speed is about 3 knots (5.6 km/h), which gives the Orca a range of up to 6,500 miles (10,500 km) with an endurance of several months. [2] [6]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Naval Sea Systems Command considers an extra-large unmanned undersea vehicle to have a diameter of at least 54 inches (140 cm) and be capable of extended range and endurance [1]

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References

  1. ↑ "Navy Awards Phase I Of Orca XLUUV To Lockheed Martin And Boeing". Defense Daily. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Orca XLUUV". Naval Technology. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Boeing wins $43 million contract for autonomous submarines". Workboat. 21 February 2019. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  4. 1 2 "The Navy is starting to put up real money for robot submarines". Los Angeles Times. 19 April 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  5. ↑ "Boeing Delivers First Orca XLUUV to U.S. Navy". Naval News. 2023-12-20.
  6. 1 2 3 "As U.S. Navy Plans for Unmanned Ships, Its Biggest Shipbuilder Adapts". The Maritime Executive. 12 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
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