Royal Navy goes fishing for suppliers to build its Type 93 robot submarine

The Royal Navy is seeking suppliers to build its Type 93 robot submarine as part of its Hybrid Navy vision, a transition to a mix of crewed, uncrewed, and autonomous platforms. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) issued a preliminary market engagement notice inviting organizations to register their interest in the Type 93 and the AUKUS Signature Payload Program, which aims to develop weapons and other systems for the UK’s uncrewed submarine and those of partner nations.

The notice aims to gather a comprehensive list of interested suppliers for Extra-Large Uncrewed Underwater Vehicle (XLUUV) platforms and the wider ecosystem, including payload providers, suppliers of relevant tech and software, integrators, and firms to provide through-life support. The Type 93 will be around 12 meters (40 ft) in length and 2 meters (6.5 ft) in diameter, and existing uncrewed submarine prototypes like the XV Excalibur and BAE Systems Herne are being considered for the project.

The initiative also includes the development of uncrewed surface vessels, such as the Type 92 sensor platform and Type 94 radar and sensor platform, as well as the scrapping of the planned Type 83 Destroyer in favor of six Common Combat Vessels (CCVs) acting as command-and-control hubs for all drone ships.

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