Earlier this month, Boeing was awarded a $61.2 million deal to deliver additional High Altitude Anti-Submarine Weapon Capability (HAAWC) kits to the U.S. Navy, keeping the program on track despite the U.S. Navy’s changes to the program and restructuring of future capability.
The High Altitude Anti-Submarine Weapon Capability, which reached initial operating capability (IOC) in 2022, was hit with significant changes to future development this year when follow-on development was cancelled and shifted to an “incremental approach”.
The development funding aimed to integrate HAAWC glide kits onto the Mark 54 Mod 2 torpedo which required additional work due to the differences in weight and outer mold lines between the Mod 0/1 and Mod 2 variants.
“The current HAAWC design was developed to deploy the MK 54 MOD 0/1. The MK 54 MOD 2 is not compatible with HAAWC due to having different mass properties and outer mold line from the MK 54 MOD 0/1 LWT. The HAAWC development program was cancelled due to the restructuring of the MK 54 MOD 2 program to an incremental approach.”
U.S. Navy
A U.S. Navy spokesperson revealed that HAAWC kits delivered today will support the initial Mark 54 Mod 2 torpedoes being produced, which are a unique variant that merges the Mod 2 forebody with the Mod 1 afterbody. This will allow Mod 1 torpedoes to leverage Mod 2 seeker, control, and warhead enhancements while the new propulsion section, the Stored Chemical Energy Propulsion System (SCEPS), continues development.
Mod 2 – Mod 1 mated Mark 54 torpedoes are considered Increment 1 of the Mod 2 family of torpedoes, with Increment 2 being the fully developed Mod 2 weapon that incorporates SCEPS.
The spokesperson also verified the HAAWC program’s integrity, stating that deferred follow-on development for the HAAWC program will not impact current orders.
“Current HAAWC design will support initial Mark 54 Mod 2 torpedoes, with no major modifications expected. The Navy’s decision to defer future HAAWC development does not impact current requirements for HAAWC production.”
U.S. Navy Spokesperson
HAAWC gives Boeing’s P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft a standoff, high-altitude anti-submarine warfare capability that allows for target prosecution from cruising altitudes. Further iterations of HAAWC’s Mark 54 parent torpedo, built by Raytheon, will enable greater HAAWC lethality.
Standoff torpedoes like HAAWC increase survivability of P-8As, allowing them to operate farther from contested or hostile airspace that would be dangerous for large, non-maneuvering targets like maritime patrol aircraft.
Boeing officials who spoke with Naval News could not comment on how HAAWC ties into newly delivered capabilities in the Increment 3 Block 2 update delivered to the U.S. Navy earlier this year, or if HAAWC was being pitched as an iterative development for VL-ASROC on surface ships.
HAAWC has been in full rate production since 2022. Production continues at Boeing’s St. Charles, Missouri facility where production will remain steady through a large part of the decade as glide kits are delivered. HAAWC production and development remains on-track and on-target to meet fielding requirements.
