Military Technology

HII Secures U.S. Navy Option-Year Contract for Lionfish Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Production

Kevin Macmellon

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HII Secures U.S. Navy Option-Year Contract for Lionfish Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Production
U.S. Navy's Lionfish Unmanned Undersea Vehicle, built by HII, is designed for autonomous undersea reconnaissance and mine countermeasure missions

HII has been awarded an option-year production contract to continue manufacturing the U.S. Navy's Lionfish Small Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (SUUV), reinforcing the Navy's investment in autonomous undersea warfare capabilities, including naval missions, mine countermeasures, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), anti-submarine warfare, and electronic warfare.

HII REMUS Team Prepares an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle for Mission Deployment

The contract follows a major production milestone achieved at the end of 2025, when HII completed the 42nd Lionfish vehicle at its Pocasset, Massachusetts, production facility. The five-year production program has the potential to scale to as many as 200 vehicles, with a total contract value exceeding $347 million.

Built on the Proven REMUS 300 Platform

Lionfish is derived from HII's commercial REMUS 300 platform, which was originally developed through collaboration with the U.S. Navy and the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU).

The modular, open-architecture design enables rapid integration of new payloads and sensors, allowing the vehicle to adapt to evolving operational requirements while reducing lifecycle costs.

REMUS Family Comparison: Where Lionfish Fits

The Lionfish SUUV is based on HII's REMUS 300 autonomous underwater vehicle, positioning it between compact tactical AUVs and larger deep-water autonomous platforms. The REMUS family is designed to cover a wide range of naval missions, from coastal reconnaissance to deep-ocean exploration.

HII REMUS Underwater Drone Begins Its Dive for Autonomous Maritime Operations

Modular Payloads for Multi-Mission Operations

The REMUS platform features an open architecture that allows operators to configure the vehicle for different missions. Depending on the variant, payload options include:

  • Side-scan sonar
  • Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS)
  • Multi-beam sonar
  • Laser scanner
  • High-resolution cameras
  • Magnetometer
  • Bathymetric mapping sensors
  • User-defined mission payloads
  • Third-party autonomy software

A Milestone for U.S. Naval Autonomy

According to HII, the Lionfish program represents the U.S. Navy's first successful transition from an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) prototype to full-scale production.

It is also the first and only cyber-compliant unmanned underwater vehicle currently in production for the Navy, highlighting its readiness for operational deployment in modern contested environments.

Expanding Global REMUS Fleet

The Lionfish program also builds on the long operational history of HII's REMUS family of unmanned underwater vehicles.

The company has delivered more than 700 REMUS vehicles to customers in over 30 countries, including 14 NATO members, with more than 90% of the systems remaining in active service after decades of operation.

Author: Kevin Macmellon

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