American defence firm HII has been awarded a contract to supply a system to launch and recover underwater drones from U.S. Navy submarines.
As per a company press statement, it has recently been awarded a contract by the Department of War’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to deliver a Torpedo Tube Launch and Recovery (TTLR) system to autonomously deploy and recover HII’s REMUS unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) from U.S. Navy submarines.
President of the Unmanned Systems group at HII’s Mission Technologies division Duane Fotheringham commented: “This contract award reflects HII’s 25-year leadership in advancing autonomous unmanned maritime platforms and integrating them into submarine operations.”
The firm said it has so far delivered more than 750 of its REMUS UUVs to over 30 countries, including 14 NATO members. It claimed that more than 90% of those systems remain in service after more than two decades.
In June 2025 as part of the U.S. Navy’s Yellow Moray programme, an HII-built REMUS 600 UUV was launched and recovered three times from the torpedo tube of the forward-deployed Virginia-class submarine USS Delaware.
The following month a next-generation REMUS 620 UUV was recovered into a Virginia-class submarine torpedo tube and shutterway test fixture at Seneca Lake, New York.
HII noted: “During in-water testing, the REMUS 620 demonstrated advanced autonomous navigation and communication capabilities.
“The vehicle successfully docked with a shock and fire enclosure capsule (SAFECAP) within a submerged torpedo tube test fixture and executed reverse swim-out launch and safe separation procedures — validating critical operational functions for future deployment.”
- You can read more details on the HII website