Scott Nicholas
Leidos has conducted a series of initial performance trials on an autonomous vehicle it is developing for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency‘s Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel program.
Leidos said Monday its 132-foot trimaran Sea Hunter either met or exceeded speed, maneuverability, stability, seakeeping, acceleration/deceleration and fuel consumption performance requirements under the two-year DARPA and Office of Naval Research co-sponsored test program.
Sea Hunter was designed to operate for extended periods at sea with no staff on board and sparse supervisory control throughout the duration of the deployment, Leidos noted.
DARPA and a Leidos-led team christened the Sea Hunter prototype in April at a dockside ceremony held in Portland, Oregon.
Leidos added the vessel will undergo sensor, autonomy suit, maritime collision regulations and proof-of-concept demonstration testing in the upcoming months for a variety of U.S. Navy missions.
