The U.S. Navy plans to purchase 30 medium unmanned surface vessels (MUSVs) from three companies. Each contract is for 10 MUSVs at an average procurement cost of $40 million per vessel.
“MUSVs are an important part of the hedge strategy laid out in our U.S. Navy Fighting Instructions,” Adm. Daryl Caudle, chief of naval operations, said. “They give commanders a tailored offset — additional capacity and capability that can be rapidly adapted to the threat, distributed across the battlespace, and placed at risk without placing sailors at unnecessary risk. Just as importantly, MUSVs give us a platform for rapidly integrating new sensors, weapons, and other mission payloads as technology and operational requirements change.”
The purchase agreements follow successful sea testing that evaluated the vessels’ ability to conduct a long-duration mission, the vessels’ ability to see and understand the surrounding maritime environment, how well the vessels navigate autonomously according to International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, and other core capabilities.
The first vessels are expected to be delivered before the end of fiscal year 2027.
The companies that completed the prototype will receive a $15 million award and are now eligible to receive follow-on production agreements from authorized acquisition authorities.