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10 Sep 25. Australia announces $1.7bn investment in next-gen autonomous sub fleet. Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy has announced a $1.7 bn, five-year contract to deliver a fleet of next-generation, extra-large autonomous submarines for the Royal Australian Navy. Defence Connect can officially reveal that the Australian government will commit $1.7bn over five years to add a fleet of locally designed and built extra-large autonomous submarines, known as Ghost Shark, under a new five-year contract with Anduril Australia. The deal covers delivery, sustainment and further development of the cutting-edge uncrewed undersea platform, which is designed for long-range intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and strike missions. Ghost Shark is expected to provide a major boost to Australia’s undersea warfare capability, complementing both the Navy’s future surface combatants and conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles said the acquisition would enhance Australia’s ability to respond to an increasingly complex security environment.
“The Ghost Shark is a world-leading platform made right here in Australia. Over the next five years and beyond, it will give Navy the intelligence, surveillance and strike capabilities it needs,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.
Since 2022, the federal government has invested about $145 m in Ghost Shark’s development, payloads and production facilities. The latest contract will support around 120 existing roles and create more than 150 new long-term, highly skilled jobs at Anduril Australia. Minister Conroy said the program was also driving growth through the supply chain.
“This is a critical capability that the Albanese government is delivering at pace – with all three prototypes delivered on budget and ahead of schedule. Our investment backs 120 existing workers and creates more than 150 new high-skilled, local jobs,” Minister Conroy said.
Another 42 Australian companies are contributing to the Ghost Shark program, with an estimated 600 additional jobs to follow from this broader supply chain involvement.
David Goodrich OAM, executive chairman and CEO of Anduril Australia and Asia-Pacific, celebrated this announcement, saying, “Ghost Shark has reached Program of Record status in just three years – a remarkable milestone made possible through an unprecedented co-development and co-investment partnership with Navy, DSTG and ASCA. This achievement reflects what is possible when Defence and industry work shoulder to shoulder: ideating, innovating and inspiring each other to deliver extraordinary advancements in subsea technology.”
The 2024 National Defence Strategy identified uncrewed undersea and surface vessels as a priority for delivering asymmetric advantage to the Australian Defence Force. The Ghost Shark is classified as an Extra-Large Autonomous Undersea Vehicle (XL-AUV) which will provide the Navy with a cost-effective, stealthy and persistent platform to help secure Australia’s vast maritime approaches. Beyond meeting domestic needs, the program also offers opportunities for sovereign design, engineering and manufacturing, with strong export potential. (Source: Defence Connect)
09 Sep 25. Teledyne FLIR Defense, part of Teledyne Technologies Incorporated (NYSE:TDY), today introduced its revolutionary SkyCarrier™ platform at the DSEI tradeshow in London, showcasing a breakthrough in autonomous drone operations for military and civil applications. Designed for launch and recovery of Teledyne FLIR’s SkyRaider® and SkyRanger® unmanned aerial systems (UAS), SkyCarrier enables fully autonomous, on-the-move drone deployment from land vehicles, maritime vessels, or fixed sites. SkyCarrier’s ruggedized container fully protects the drone when closed and opens to unfold an articulating launch and landing pad, allowing drones to autonomously take off and return – even while in motion or on uneven terrain. The pad maximizes the UAV landing area, centers aircraft, and reduces storage space. Using visual markers such as NIR landing beacons and QR codes or AprilTags, the drone can precisely navigate back to the platform without operator input.
“SkyCarrier represents a major leap forward in autonomous drone operations,” said Dr. JihFen Lei, president of Teledyne FLIR Defense. “Its ability to launch, recover, and manage drones from moving platforms – without GPS or constant operator control – makes it a game-changer for missions ranging from battlefield surveillance and disaster response to critical infrastructure protection.
“SkyCarrier offers both military and non-military users a versatile UAS solution that reduces operator workload while boosting efficiency,” Lei added.
Key Features of SkyCarrier:
- Autonomous Launch & Recovery – Actively compensates up to 20°, enabling UAS to land on moving or stationary platforms without manual control
- Environmental Protection – Protects the drone from brush, debris, and other environmental factors when not operating
- Optionally Tethered – Supports either free-flight or tethered operation over a variety of radio and network configurations, even while the unit is fully closed
- Autonomous Management – Supports rapid charging and active thermal management, enabling fully remote operations in extreme environments
- ‘Follow Me’ Mode – Drones can track and return to designated vehicles, personnel, or locations
- Autonomous In-air Replacement (AIR) – A single operator can manage up to 16 drones, maintaining persistent surveillance by autonomously swapping drones mid-mission
- Dark Mode & GPS-Denied Navigation – Operates in RF-silent and GPS-degraded environments using computer vision and dead reckoning; also features NIR beacons for low-visibility environments, obstacle avoidance, and jam-resistant RTK GPS
- Extended Endurance with XL Batteries – Enables up to 45 minutes of flight time with a 2kg (4.4lb) payload.
SkyCarrier has been successfully trialed on multiple maritime vessels, including fast attack boats and rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs), and from ground vehicles traveling over rugged terrain at speeds up to 50km/h (30mph), demonstrating its reliability in real-world conditions.
SkyCarrier leverages the capabilities of multiple FLIR Defense- and partner-developed payloads. These include long-range daylight, thermal imaging, targeting, electronic warfare, signals intelligence, remote CBRN detection, and kinetic effects. Its versatility makes SkyCarrier ideal for a wide range of missions – from ISR to convoy and border security to hazmat operations, even as a communications relay.
Visit Teledyne FLIR Defense at Stand #S3-110 to see SkyCarrier at DSEI from Sept. 9-12, or learn more about our Unmanned Aerial Systems portfolio online. (Source: BUSINESS WIRE)
09 Sep 25. The UK’s BAE Systems and Canadian company Cellula Robotics have signed a 10-year exclusive agreement to continue working together on Herne, a new autonomous submarine developed specifically for military use, and have announced that they expect to deliver a market ready craft for customers by the end of 2026. The announcement follows successful trials last November during which the submarine conducted a pre-programmed intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission powered by Nautomate, BAE Systems’ platform agnostic autonomous control system. BAE Systems has configured Herne to give militaries a cost-effective option to conduct various missions. It can support anti-submarine warfare, undertake covert surveillance missions and monitor and help protect underwater infrastructure across the vast expanses of the seabed. Without the need to resupply or carry life support systems, it can work in tandem with crewed platforms or by itself to provide a persistent presence underwater for longer, at greater scale and a fraction of the cost of traditional submarines.
Scott Jamieson, Managing Director of BAE Systems’ Maritime & Land Defence Solutions business, said: “The trials last year were a huge success and I’m delighted that we’re building on that momentum with this new collaboration agreement to maintain the phenomenal pace at which we’re developing Herne. It’s a game changer in the underwater battlespace and will enable us to offer our customers a cost-effective autonomous capability providing them with more endurance, efficiency and scale, whilst keeping their people out of harm’s way.”
Neil Manning, Chief Executive Officer, Cellula Robotics Ltd, said: “Herne, the result of this partnership, embodies the fusion of cutting-edge engineering from both companies to create a platform with unmatched endurance and operability, setting it apart from others in the field. At Cellula, we believe Herne, powered by our hydrogen-based energy solution, represents a cost-effective force multiplier. It helps to fill an essential gap, complementing Navy’s operational needs while seamlessly integrating with other marine defense systems. Cellula is honored to be selected by BAE Systems, recognising their foresight and vision in forming this partnership.”
This successful collaboration has so far resulted in a ‘whiteboard to water’ capability in just 11 months, culminating in a series of successful trials in the UK and Canada throughout 2024. The trials informed a number of design enhancements and BAE Systems and Cellula Robotics continue to refine the Herne submarine, with the aim of delivering a market ready craft for customers by the end of 2026.
09 Sep 25. BMT, a leading international multi-disciplinary engineering and ship design consultancy, today unveiled its Modular Uncrewed Ship concept MODUS – highlighting its commitment to research and innovation in ship design and naval engineering. With a fundamentally modular approach at its core, BMT’s vision stands apart in the autonomy space by focusing on adaptable solutions for specific operational needs, not just a one-size-fits-all vessel. The concept reflects the ambitions set forth in the United Kingdom’s Strategic Defence Review and broader industry trend towards larger more capable uncrewed vessels with greater use of autonomy. MODUS presents new opportunities for collaboration with industry and customers worldwide seeking cost-effective and more sustainable, high-technology maritime solutions that can be tailored for a range of user cases. Challenging everything we know about traditional crewed vessel design; MODUS aims to unlock the benefits of autonomy and uncrewed vessels at scale. Working to a new design philosophy focussing on pace (speed of production), price (cost effective mass) and persistence (high availability) the project has developed pre-concept designs for a medium USV (40 metres) and a large USV (75 metres). These vessels are designed for specific use cases including offshore survey, seabed warfare and anti-submarine warfare. With a flexible modular architecture, MODUS is ready to meet the next generation of hybrid maritime operations where a mix of crewed and uncrewed vessels will work together in concert. Responding to the growing demand for medium and large uncrewed surface vessels and signals from the Royal Navy and international markets, MODUS addresses a core challenge many naval operators are facing, delivering affordable mass into fleets at pace to meet evolving threats and growing demand. The project is built on over 6 years of research, beginning with the Highly Autonomous Warship Technology (HAWT) programme, completed in 2021, which advanced the safe and secure integration of autonomous technologies, lean-crewing and digital automation into vessel design. Building on these foundations, the Large Uncrewed Surface Vessel (LUSV) initiative, showcased at DSEI in 2023, demonstrated how large uncrewed vessels can add scalable, interoperable mass to naval fleets – delivering flexibility, endurance and greater efficiency. Together, these programmes have culminated in the MODUS concept.
Will Alexander, Global Business Development Lead – Maritime Autonomous Systems at BMT, commented: “Many navies are facing challenges including lack of mass, crew shortages, spiralling cost of building, operating and sustaining complex warships and keeping up with the pace of technology development. The need to adapt is clear and urgent. This requires a change of mindset. MODUS represents a new way of thinking and is a step towards a hybrid fleet where crewed and uncrewed platforms operate together to overcome these challenges. Our intent with MODUS is to help shape thinking, provide a credible vision and invite collaboration,” adds Alexander. “From autonomy providers to system integrators, we are open to working with partners to accelerate this concept to its next stage of maturity.”
Jake Rigby, Global Head of Innovation & Research at BMT, commented: “MODUS is not just one design; it is a family of designs with an intrinsic design philosophy to minimise vessel cost and add affordable mass to existing naval fleets: working alongside crewed assets as a mixed fleet solution. Crucially, our approach allows us to adapt each MODUS variant for specific user cases – enabling true scalability and customisation in response to operational needs, which distinguishes BMT from traditional design thinking in this space. We started with a fresh slate, working from the ground up first focusing on three core use cases of Military Data Gathering, Seabed Warfare and Anti-Submarine Warfare. We focused on simplicity of design, which ironically is often harder than a traditional design, as every decision is value engineered and scrutinised. In addition, by moving to an uncrewed design, we had the daunting but brilliant opportunity to throw out the rulebook of conventional design, answering questions of how we can build in survivability and questioning standard deck heights/ subdivision if there is no-one on board to use it.”
MODUS isn’t just modular in form; its very philosophy is about enabling flexible, scalable solutions that respond to real-world needs – helping navies and operators evolve at speed as requirements change. By fusing design ingenuity with operational practicality, BMT is offering its multidisciplinary expertise and innovative approach to ship design – as well as proven insights from established projects – to ensure MODUS serves as both a testbed and blueprint for future exploitation of autonomous and uncrewed systems. MODUS also exemplifies BMT’s commitment to national prosperity and skills, designed from the outset to draw upon UK shipbuilding capability and supply chain strengths. This approach supports ambitions set by government for “whole-of-nation” collaboration on security, economic growth and technological advancement. While currently a research and development concept, MODUS possesses scalability and adaptability for a range of future missions, from naval operations to offshore hydrographic survey, asset inspection, environmental monitoring and maritime logistics. Its development positions BMT to offer credible, carefully engineered design options in a sector seeing fast evolution and growing global demand. A fuller technical paper, authored by BMT’s Maritime Autonomous Systems experts, will be released following DSEI. This will provide deeper insight into MODUS’s modular architecture, operational concepts and the design innovations shaping the future of uncrewed naval capability. SEE US AT DSEI 2025, STAND S11-120
09 Sep 25. AIRO, Nord Drone partner to boost UAS deployment. The alliance aims to bolster AIRO’s defence and aerospace presence through Nord Drone’s tested drone systems. Aerospace and defence technologies company AIRO has signed a non-binding letter of intent (LoI) with uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) provider Nord Drone, setting the stage for both companies to potentially form a joint venture (JV). The collaboration’s focus is to expedite the delivery of combat-proven UASs to the US, Ukraine, and other Nato allies. The proposed JV is expected to leverage AIRO’s experience in manufacturing, research and development, government procurement, and strategic corporate support. In turn, Nord Drone is anticipated to contribute its proprietary drone technologies, production capabilities, supply chain access, and established relationships with defence ministries, including that of Ukraine. AIRO executive chairman Dr Chirinjeev Kathuria said: “This strategic partnership represents a significant opportunity to deliver proven, battlefield-tested technology to our allies when they need it most. By combining our engineering, manufacturing capabilities, and Nato relationships with Nord Drone’s exceptional technical expertise, we believe we can rapidly scale production of critical defence systems.” The joint venture stands as a “strategic move” to address immediate conflict response needs and support “long-term defence modernisation initiatives” across key markets. It signifies a concerted effort by both companies to respond swiftly to the demands of modern warfare and provide advanced UAS solutions to Nato allies. While the LoI sets the stage for the joint venture, it remains non-binding until definitive agreements are executed following mutual due diligence and regulatory reviews. Both AIRO Group and Nord Drone have committed to negotiating definitive documentation within 60 days but noted that there is no guarantee that such agreements will be finalised as described or at all.
“Our collaboration with AIRO has the potential to create a powerful platform to expand our combat-proven technologies to serve US and Nato forces,” Nord Drone CTO Yevgen Kotukh stated.
Nord Drone has been delivering wide range of battlefield-proven drones, including first-person view strike units, loitering munitions, and multi-role bombers. With a current production rate of 4,000 drones per month and the potential to increase output to 25,000 units with additional government support, the company’s UASs are actively deployed in conflict zones. (Source: army-technology.com)
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EOS
Electro Optic Systems (EOS) is an Australian technology company with a global presence, delivering advanced solutions across defence and space. With operations in Australia, the United States, Europe, Singapore, the Middle East and New Zealand, EOS has been designing and manufacturing precision technologies for more than four decades.
In defence, EOS is a leader in remote weapon systems, with more than 2,500 delivered and proven in operational service with allied forces. The company designs, develops and manufactures highly accurate counter-drone solutions for force and asset protection. These include both kinetic and high energy laser options that defeat drone threats effectively and at a comparatively low cost per shot. In August 2025, EOS secured the world’s first export contract for a 100 kW-class high energy laser weapon, with delivery scheduled between 2025 and 2028.
In the space domain, EOS is internationally recognised for its expertise in space domain awareness and space control. Its ground-based optical systems track and characterise satellites and debris to support both defence and commercial operations worldwide. Through its New Zealand subsidiary, EOS also designs and manufactures precision optics for space and astronomy applications.
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