Boeing’s Orca extra large uncrewed underwater vehicle (XLUUV) recently achieved a U.S. Navy milestone when it broke the 1,000-nautical-mile barrier.
The record underwater transit was revealed in a U.S. Navy press statement following the recent conclusion of the 2026 iteration of its biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise.
As per the statement, the U.S. Navy’s Orca platform completed the marathon mission in an unspecified part of the Pacific Ocean during July.
Disclosure of the XLUUV’s exploits came hand-in-hand with reports of a meeting between high-level U.S. Navy commanders, who were looking at ways of more closely aligning surface and underwater strategic operations.
U.S. Pacific Fleet’s Submarine Force commander Rear Admiral Chris Cavanaugh met R.Adm. Marcos Jasso, the commander of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9, aboard Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt to discuss how best to integrate UUVs into carrier strike group operations.
R.Adm.Cavanaugh commented: “The operational environment in the Pacific continues to evolve, with the rapid development of technological advancements in the undersea domain.
“The Pacific Submarine Force is heavily investing in unmanned capabilities to augment our manned submarines and preserve our undersea advantage across the full spectrum of submarine operations.”
- You can read more details about the post-RIMPAC meeting on the DVIDS website and more about Orca on the Boeing website
