The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) is accelerating the development of the Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous undersea vehicle (XL-AUV) with the award of an early works contract with Anduril Australia, it announced on 5 August.
Under the terms of the agreement, the DoD is co-investing A$20.1 million alongside its industry partner Anduril Australia, which will in turn match and exceed the DoD investment to put in place the necessary infrastructure and supply chain to transition the Ghost Shark program from prototype development to production. The DoD added that it has already invested A$90.1 million in the effort to date.
“The Ghost Shark program exemplifies how Australia’s defence industry can develop cutting edge technology and deliver at pace,” said Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery Pat Conroy.
The DoD added that the Ghost Shark is expected to provide persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and boost the service’s undersea strike capabilities. The XL-AUV is co-designed by Anduril Australia, the DoD’s Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG), and RAN. The project is also being supported by the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA).
Meanwhile, Anduril Australia will set up a local manufacturing facility that will manufacture the first production-spec Ghost Shark by 2025. The facility is also expected to produce Ghost Sharks for commercial applications and export.
“The co-funded early works contract between Anduril Australia and Defence will accelerate production readiness of the Ghost Shark program as well as scale the Australian supply chain at an unprecedented pace,” said Professor Emily Hilder, Head of ASCA.
“Ghost Shark is a powerful example of how ASCA can help accelerate capability to our warfighters, bringing together parts of the Defence enterprise as well as Anduril Australia, to help deliver an asymmetric advantage,” added Professor Hilder.
by Jr Ng
