Miles Jamison
Anduril’s Barracuda-500 autonomous air vehicle has been selected by the Air Force Armament Directorate and the Defense Innovation Unit to proceed to the next stage of the Enterprise Test Vehicle, or ETV, prototype program.
Evaluating the Barracuda-500 AAV
The company said Tuesday the simple and modular design of the Barraccuda-500 enabled it to conduct a demonstration in just seven months after it was included in the ETV program. By optimizing the AAV’s design and focusing on a forward-thinking approach to developing capabilities, Anduril is accelerating the development, testing and deployment of new capabilities to the battlefield.
The Barracuda-500 was initially selected after going through an end-to-end flight test in September 2024. The test included pre-mission planning and a vertical launch from a cell simulation of palletized employment from air-lift aircraft. The test also covered over 30 minutes of autonomous navigation and flight, the capture of a GPS coordinate target in Lattice and autonomous terminal guidance.
Next Phase of the ETV Program
Anduril will test the Barracuda-500’s autonomous teaming capabilities, manufacturability and adaptability in the next phase of the project, scheduled later this year. The flight tests will include simultaneous vertical launches, in-flight communications between systems and utilization of Lattice for Mission Authority to enable advanced collaborative behaviors.
During the program’s next phase, Anduril will manufacture Barracuda-500 AAVs using processes representative of future full-rate production. This is intended to showcase the AAV’s manufacturability and affordability.
Furthermore, the company will demonstrate the platform’s modular design. The test will be used to assess the Barracuda-500’s compliance with Weapon Open System Architecture standards.
