Sweden has completed the first phase of a government-led Large Uncrewed Underwater Vehicle (LUUV) project after developing and launching the demonstrator in less than one year, according to Saab’s announcement on October 16.
The project is led by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) with Saab and the Swedish Armed Forces. Saab said the vehicle progressed from concept to a fully functional demonstrator and completed successful sea trials. The next phase is expected to develop more advanced capabilities and support further work on software, sensors and autonomous functions.
The demonstrator uses Saab’s Autonomous Ocean Core, an autonomous control system for surface and subsurface vehicles. Saab said the platform is intended to support future operations alongside existing naval assets, including submarines, but the announcement does not describe an operational deployment or a procurement decision.
FMV’s role is to evaluate the technology and provide a basis for decisions about future acquisition and use. The vehicle is intended to remain at sea for extended periods, monitor areas and collect information through its sensors, communications systems and software, according to reporting on FMV’s announcement.
The next testing campaign will examine the reliability of the LUUV’s autonomy, communications and sensors in a representative environment. The exact advanced capabilities and timetable have not been specified, and the system’s capabilities have not yet been validated under operational conditions. The project therefore remains at the demonstrator and evaluation stage rather than operational service.