The UK will lead the development of three advanced undersea payloads for uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) operated by Australia, the UK, and the US under the AUKUS security partnership. The technologies are designed to help autonomous underwater systems map the ocean floor, detect potential threats, and deploy underwater effects. Availability across the three nations’ fleets is expected from 2027.The announcement follows a week of demonstrations at the Maritime Big Play-Pacific exercise in San Diego, where allied forces tested how crewed and uncrewed maritime systems could operate together. The work forms part of the first signature project under AUKUS Pillar II, which focuses on developing advanced capabilities through cooperation between the three countries.The UK will lead the development and delivery of three payloads: a Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS), a Deployable Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Sensor, and a Deployable Non-Kinetic Effector.Three payloads for underwater surveillanceThe three systems are intended to give uncrewed underwater vehicles a broader range of sensing and operational capabilities. Synthetic Aperture Sonar uses acoustic signals to produce detailed images of the seabed and underwater objects. By combining measurements collected as a vehicle moves, the technology can create higher-resolution images than conventional sonar systems, helping operators examine large underwater areas and identify objects of interest.The Deployable Anti-Submarine Warfare Sensor takes a different approach. Rather than relying only on sensors carried by a vehicle, it is designed to deploy sensing equipment into the water to detect and classify underwater threats. Such distributed sensors could help expand surveillance coverage and improve the ability to monitor potential submarine activity.The third payload, a Deployable Non-Kinetic Effector, is intended to generate effects underwater without relying on conventional kinetic weapons. The UK Ministry of Defense has not disclosed its precise technical configuration or the specific effects it will produce.Together, the payloads are intended to help UUVs conduct wider-area surveillance and contribute to the protection of critical underwater infrastructure, including subsea cables and other strategically important assets.AUKUS tests autonomous systems in San DiegoThe development announcement followed Maritime Big Play-Pacific, an exercise designed to test how autonomous maritime technologies can be integrated into allied operations before wider deployment.The exercise covered four areas: anti-submarine warfare, lethality, contested resupply, and subsea and seabed warfare. The UK led the anti-submarine warfare strand, contributing 13 uncrewed surface vehicles, two ASW targets, and four underwater gliders supplied by six industry partners.The demonstrations also focused on the control systems needed to coordinate different autonomous platforms. Getting underwater vehicles, surface drones, and crewed naval vessels to exchange information and operate together is essential if uncrewed systems are to become a meaningful part of future naval operations.The UK Ministry of Defense described the effort as part of its planned transition toward a Hybrid Navy, combining crewed warships and submarines with autonomous and uncrewed platforms.The project also involves a wider industrial network. UK companies SEA Ltd, Decision Analysis Services Ltd, and A2i, alongside US-based MSI Transducers, were selected through the AUKUS Maritime Innovation Challenge. The four suppliers share £3 million (approximately $4 million) in funding to develop technologies for the command, control, and cooperation of undersea systems.Expanding underwater capabilitiesThe new payloads build on other recent AUKUS milestones in autonomous underwater warfare. Earlier in October, a US-Australian heavyweight torpedo was successfully test-fired from the UK’s extra-large uncrewed underwater vehicle, XV Excalibur. The demonstration marked the first such firing from an uncrewed submarine.The developments reflect growing interest in using autonomous platforms to extend naval surveillance and operations across large maritime areas. Uncrewed systems can potentially remain deployed for extended periods, cover areas that would be difficult to monitor continuously with crewed vessels, and reduce the need to expose personnel to dangerous missions.With the three new sensor payloads expected to become available across AUKUS fleets from 2027, the partnership is moving toward a more integrated network of autonomous maritime capabilities. The challenge will be turning individual demonstrations and technologies into systems that can reliably operate together in real-world conditions.