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Raytheon Barracuda Naval Mine Killer Achieves Development Milestone

AN/AQS-20C Mine-Hunting Sonar. Photo: Raytheon Missiles & Defense

Raytheon has completed the technical data package of the Barracuda countermine device, achieving a major development goal.

Raytheon has been developing the system since 2018 under an $83-million US Navy contract, with deployment expected in 2026.

A total of 128 Barracudas are being built: 63 for contractor trials and 65 for US Navy trials, according to Seapower.

Sea Mine Assassin

The Barracuda is an expendable, semi-autonomous unmanned, underwater vehicle that searches, identifies, and destroys bottom, near-surface, and drifting mines.

It features a kill mechanism, propulsion systems, sensors, and a communications buoy. Four water jets propel the system near a suspected mine identified by the AN/AQS-20C sonar mine countermeasures mission system.

It receives target GPS coordinates through a tethered acoustic communication data link.

The camera and sonar are mounted on its nose, enabling target confirmation through human operators.

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