Anduril Industries has unveiled the first of three Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous undersea vehicles in Australia.
The unveiling was accompanied with the announcement that the 140 million Australian dollar ($100 million) project is ahead of schedule and budget.
Anduril is partnering with the Australian Defence Department to design, develop, and build the submarines for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), with delivery scheduled in 2025.
“We’re moving incredibly quickly on this program in lockstep with our ASCA (Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator), DSTG (Defence Science and Technology Group), and the RAN partners,” Anduril Australia CEO David Goodrich said.
Modular Sub
The modular submarine will feature stealth and long-range autonomous capabilities for persistent intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and strike missions.
Ghost Shark’s early prototype, unveiled in December 2022, was capable of performing at a depth of around 19,685 feet (6,000 meters) and staying underwater for 10 days.
“Due to their range, stealth and persistence Ghost Shark will be able to operate throughout the Indo-Pacific,” Rear Adm. Peter Quinn said in 2022.
“Due to its modular and multi-role nature, our adversaries will need to assume that their every move in the maritime domain is subject to our surveillance and that every XL-UV (drone) is capable of deploying a wide range of effects — including lethal ones.”
Indigenous Project
It is part of the Australian government’s 7.2 billion Australian dollar ($4.62 billion) investment in the development and acquisition of subsea warfare capabilities and new autonomous and uncrewed maritime vehicles.
Moreover, the entirely indigenous project includes 10 Australian companies partnering with Anduril and 42 others benefitting in the supply chain.
“For Ghost Shark, we have assembled a unique high-powered engineering team of 121 people from the best-of-Australia, across tech, resources and defense, to fuel this progress,” Senior Vice President Engineering at Anduril Industries Shane Arnott said.
“We have 42 Australian companies currently working on Ghost Shark, which is being designed, engineered and manufactured in Australia. We plan to manufacture at scale in Australia for the Royal Australian Navy, and then for export to our allies and partners around the world.”
We’re gonna need a bigger boat!
Meet Ghost Shark, an extra-large autonomous undersea vehicle (XL-AUV). That’s right, a massive underwater drone.
As a defense product, Ghost Shark is even rarer than the creature it was named after: the prototype was delivered ahead of schedule,… pic.twitter.com/h0TWkQXRQZ
— Anduril Industries (@anduriltech) April 18, 2024
