Chief of Naval Operations Highlights Robotic and Autonomous Systems with Visit to Orca Extra Large Unmanned Undersea Vehicle

Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Lisa Franchetti toured Boeing’s Orca Extra Large Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (XLUUV) manufacturing facility, met with Boeing contractors and Sailors assigned to Unmanned Undersea Vehicles Squadron (UUVRON) 3, and gave remarks about the importance of having robotic multi-mission submersibles in the fleet, Dec 6.

The Orca XLUUV is one of several unmanned maritime systems programs that the Navy is developing and acquiring to expand to the hybrid Fleet.

“Getting Orca into the hands of our warfighters will help us get after my project 33 targets because she is another player - with some really unique capabilities - on the field in America's Warfighting Navy,” said Franchetti. “Orca, and other platforms like her, are an important step forward as we drive towards our future hybrid fleet, which is going be composed of manned and unmanned platforms. It's a hybrid fleet that we know we will need to maintain our warfighting advantage.”

Orca and other autonomous systems represent a leap forward in naval warfare, providing unmatched operational advantages by extending reach, reducing risks to personnel, and enhancing strategic capabilities.

“I have no doubt that Orca will contribute to our future lethality, to our warfighting effectiveness, and further bolster our ability to deter any potential adversaries,” said Franchetti. “What we learn from this capability will inform the development of future robotic and autonomous systems, and ultimately provide a lot of agility, flexibility and new options to our nation's decision makers, so that if deterrence fails, we're ready to fight and win decisively.”

As reflected in CNO’s Navigation Plan for America’s Warfighting Navy “operationalizing robotic and autonomous systems: move proven systems into the hands of the warfighters”, is one of seven project 33 targets that will help the Navy permanently raise the baseline level of readiness for the possibility of war with the People’s Republic of China by 2027.

Construction of XLE-1 is complete, and the vehicle is at Marina Shipyard for contractor pierside and at-sea testing. Delivery of XLE-1 to the Navy is expected in early 2025, with follow-on Navy Developmental and Operational Testing (DT/OT) through the third quarter of fiscal year 2025. After completion of Developmental and Operational Testing, UUVRON 3 will complete crew certification, and XLE-1 will be ready for deployment.