HII has been awarded a contract by the US Defense Innovation Unit to deliver a submarine Torpedo Tube Launch and Recovery (TTLR) system capable of autonomously deploying and recovering its REMUS 620 unmanned underwater vehicle from US Navy submarines, without diver assistance.

The REMUS 620 is the second-generation medium-class vehicle in the REMUS family, sharing the same physical envelope as its predecessor, the REMUS 600, and compatible with existing launch, recovery, handling and logistics solutions.

In baseline configuration, with a single battery module, the vehicle measures 3.1m and displaces 222kg, with a depth rating of 600m. Fitted with three battery modules, its maximum endurance is 110 hours and its range is 275nm at a sprint speed of 8knots. With synthetic aperture sonar installed, endurance reduces to 78 hours and range to 200nm.

The vehicle’s communications architecture supports data offload via removable hard drive, Wi-Fi and Iridium satellite link, with additional options including line-of-sight RF, high-data-rate transmission, acoustic modems, optical modems and plug-in Ethernet.

Autonomy is managed through HII’s Odyssey suite, which supports collaborative multi-vehicle mission planning across both unmanned surface vessels and uncrewed underwater vehicles.

This article appeared in Insights, TNA May/June 2026