US Navy selects Lockheed Martin to deliver Large Unmanned Surface Vessel study

Lockheed Martin will undertake a study for a proven, integrated and capable payload ship, able to patrol for extended durations, under a $7 million contract as part of the US Navy’s Large Unmanned Surface Vessel (LUSV) competition. Lockheed Martin is partnering with Vigor Works LLC in Portland, Maine, as the team’s shipbuilder. As prime contractor, Lockheed Martin will manage the program, deliver platform integration, systems engineering, combat management, automation and cyber solutions.

“Our team is energized by and focused on delivering the Navy what they’ve asked for – a design for an affordable, low-risk ship capable of bringing the Navy’s Distributed Maritime Operations (DMO) vision to life,” said Joe DePietro, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager of Small Combatants and Ship Systems.

The Lockheed Martin team’s design uses a proven commercial ship that will be augmented with automation, autonomy and cybersecurity elements to house a payload. The design leverages Lockheed Martin’s autonomy and automation experience, including its proven platform-agnostic Sikorsky MATRIX™ technology that’s been used to fly a helicopter from a wireless tablet, and AXIS™ control technology, used on more than half of US Navy surface ships to manage engineering and machinery controls.

Under the contract Lockheed Martin will deliver the study within 12 months in advance of the next phase of the competition – the Navy’s LUSV Detailed Design & Construction competition.