First Orca XLUUV On Sea Trials Ahead Of Delivery to US Navy

Construction of XLE-1, the first of Boeing's Orca Extra Large Uncrewed Undersea Vehicles (XLUUVs) is complete and the U.S. Navy will take delivery in early 2025.

The pioneering autonomous vessel is currently at Marina Shipyard in Long Beach, California where the firm is carrying out pierside and at-sea testing, as per a recent U.S. Navy press statement.

Once this program of trials is successfully completed the vessel will be handed over to the sailors assigned to Unmanned Undersea Vehicles Squadron (UUVRON) 3, who will conduct follow-on Navy Developmental and Operational Testing (DT/OT) towards the end of 2025. Once DT/OT has been completed XLE-1 will be ready for deployment.

On Friday U.S. Navy Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Lisa Franchetti toured the nearby Boeing factory where the XLUUVs are made and met some of the firm's representatives.

During her visit she emphasised just why it was critical to have robotic multi-mission submersibles. She commented: “Getting Orca into the hands of our warfighters will help us get after my project 33 targets because she is another player - with some really unique capabilities - on the field in America's Warfighting Navy.”

She added: “Orca, and other platforms like her, are an important step forward as we drive towards our future hybrid fleet, which is going be composed of manned and unmanned platforms. It's a hybrid fleet that we know we will need to maintain our warfighting advantage.”

The Orca XLUUV is one of many uncrewed maritime systems the Navy is developing and acquiring. It and other autonomous systems will help extend the service's reach, minimise risks to personnel, and enhance its capabilities.

“I have no doubt that Orca will contribute to our future lethality, to our warfighting effectiveness, and further bolster our ability to deter any potential adversaries,” said Franchetti. “What we learn from this capability will inform the development of future robotic and autonomous systems, and ultimately provide a lot of agility, flexibility and new options to our nation's decision makers, so that if deterrence fails, we're ready to fight and win decisively.”

As per the Boeing website, Orca has a claimed range of 6,500 nautical miles and can operate autonomously with limited human interaction on missions lasting for months at a time. The XLUUV is 51 feet long with an 8.5 foot beam and its payload bay has an eight-ton capacity; it's powered by a mixture of batteries and diesel generators.

• You can read more details on the U.S. Navy website and Boeing's website