Unmanned underwater tech acquisition bubbles to the surface

WASHINGTON — The unmanned space has seen an uptick in acquisition activity recently.

BAE Systems — the U.S. subsidiary of British multinational defense, aerospace and security company BAE Systems plc — announced the purchase of key assets of Riptide Autonomous Solutions, a provider of unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) technology and solutions.

According to the press release, Riptide will offer UUV technology with greater depth, range, endurance and speed.

“Adding Riptide’s technological capabilities will position us to provide customers unmatched flexibility by offering a family of UUVs and integrated payload solutions capable of supporting a variety of critical missions,” said Terry Crimmins, president of BAE Systems Electronic Systems, in the announcement.

“Coupling our extensive expertise in sonar, signal processing, sensor fusion, undersea communications, electronic warfare, and autonomous systems with Riptide’s unique UUV platforms will enable us to affordably address rapidly expanding maritime mission requirements in the global defense, commercial, and research markets.”

Hints of interest in the market emerged a couple years ago, when BAE Systems was awarded a $4.6 million contract by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in 2017 for work that would allow submarines to detect other undersea vessels at greater distances without being detected.

Other companies have showcased similar interest. Boeing received a $274 million Navy contract March 28 for five extra-large UUVs.

More In Unmanned Systems

Saab unveils technology incubator using Enforcer 3 as test bed

“We are trying to get capability to the fleet in months,” said Erik Smith, the chief executive of Saab's U.S. branch.

Lockheed to supply Australia with air battle management system

Overhauling Australia’s overhead defenses is expected to generate hundreds of local jobs as well as open the door to a multibillion-dollar export market.

Defense Innovation Unit prepares to execute $800 million funding boost

DIU Director Doug Beck said he doesn’t foresee any issues with quickly putting to work the $983 million in FY-24 funding Congress provided in March.

Army may swap AI bill of materials for simpler ‘baseball cards’

"We know innovation's happening in the open-source environment," said the Army's Bharat Patel. "We also know who's contributing to the open source."

How L3Harris is shoring up its small satellite supply chain

The president of L3Harris’ space systems sector, recently sat down with C4ISRNET to discuss the challenges of developing a diverse yet mature supply base.