U.S. Navy Issues RFP for MUUV Program

UUVs by GDMS/Bluefin Robotics on display at DSEI 2019 (for illustration purpose)
The U.S. Navy released a request for proposals for the design, development, test, and production of the Medium Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (MUUV) May 21.
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Naval Sea Systems Command press release

The solicitation will support the next generation of the Program Executive Office Unmanned and Small Combatants Unmanned Maritime Systems Program Office, Razorback Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) and the Naval Sea Systems Command Expeditionary Missions Program Office, Maritime Expeditionary Mine Countermeasures UUV (MEMUUV) system.

The MUUV will be a modular, open systems, and open architecture UUV. In the Razorback Torpedo Tube Launch & Recovery (TTL&R) configuration, it will provide submarine-based autonomous oceanographic sensing and data collection in support of intelligence preparation of the operational environment. In the MEMUUV configuration, it will provide persistent surface-launched and -recovered mine countermeasures (MCM).

The notional MUUV will contain a common baseline vehicle architecture, including sensors and components, for the submarine and expeditionary configurations. Launch-and-recovery systems will reflect each configuration’s unique requirements and missions.  

The MEMUUV is designed for launch from Navy and Marine Corps surface vessels, vessels of opportunity or land-based forward operating bases. The Razorback derives from the Navy’s submarine-launched Littoral Battlespace Sensing Autonomous Undersea Vehicle (Submarine) effort which has two deployment configurations: Dry Deck Shelter and TTL&R. Only TTL&R variants are included in the current solicitation.

Naval News comments

US Navy picture.

This new effort is a joint collaboration between the Unmanned Maritime Systems program office (PMS 406) and Expeditionary Missions program office (PMS 408) to leverage similar requirements, technologies, capabilities, economies of scale and training and sustainment efforts that will feed into two separate efforts.

For PMS 408, MUUV will support the Maritime Expeditionary Mine Countermeasures UUV program.

The full RFP notice can be found at this link .

Slide 2 of briefing by Captain Pete Small, Program Manager, Unmanned Maritime Systems (PMS 406) during SNA 2019.

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