Leidos Australia starts local construction of Sea Archer USV

Melbourne-based Leidos Australia has commenced the Australian build of Sea Archer, a small Uncrewed Surface Vessel (USV). This marks a major step forward in bringing Leidos’ proven autonomous technology and maritime systems portfolio to the Indo-Pacific region while supporting AUKUS objectives and the ADF’s mission needs, the company says.

NSW Central Coast-based Oceans Rivers Lakes has been appointed to build the first aluminium vessel and construction is already underway. Leidos Australia says its technical team will lead the integration of its autonomy software platform, which has already been successfully deployed across 12 different USV platforms.

The move into local manufacturing of autonomous vessels fast-tracks proven US capability to Australia, harnessing Leidos’ 50-year heritage with the US Navy and its record of more than 120,000 fully autonomous nautical miles at sea, it adds. And last month Leidos Australia won the Systems Integration Partner (SIP) contract under Defence’s Project SEA156 – this will see the company deliver and evolve a counter Small UAS (C-SUAS) capability, including a C2 and situational awareness sensor system.

At the heart of Sea Archer is Leidos’ advanced autonomy platform, LAVA, which enables high-speed, long-range, and smart mission execution across diverse maritime environments, says the company. It is integrated with Leidos’ broader battle management technologies, including ADEPT and AlphaMosaic, which harness AI to support distributed, autonomous fleet operations.

Built for speed, endurance and multi-mission payloads, Leidos Australia says Sea Archer can reach sprint speeds up to 40 knots and has a range of 1,500 nautical miles. With a flexible payload bay capacity of more than 900kg, Sea Archer can support a wide range of mission options, including strike, logistics resupply, ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance), and electromagnetic deception operations.

“Given Australia’s vast northern approaches, platforms with coverage, endurance and agility are critical,” said Paul Chase, Leidos Australia’s Chief Executive. “The capability to monitor large areas, detect security threats, navigate hazardous environments and provide continuous uncrewed support enhances our nation’s security posture, especially in today’s geostrategic environment.

“We’re aiming to deliver a rapid production capability, and because of its easy-to-build aluminium hull, can have Sea Archer built at multiple shipyards across Australia,” he added. “This approach will allow us to quickly deliver flexible, adaptable and affordable maritime solutions, using our fleet or customer vessels, to support mission needs.”

The Australian production of Sea Archer will use local capability across the supply chain from build to payload integration, autonomy software design and ship maintenance, supporting a robust sovereign ecosystem, rapid production and sustainment, says Leidos Australia.

The first US-built Sea Archer USV is currently undergoing sea trials in the US and is expected to be mission-ready by 2026.