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Australia and the United States have tested a suite of advanced autonomous and remotely operated undersea systems during RIMPAC 2026, strengthening AUKUS efforts to protect critical seabed infrastructure and counter maritime threats.
Australian and US personnel have put emerging AUKUS Pillar 2 undersea warfare capabilities through their paces during Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2026 (RIMPAC) off Hawaii.
The July activity brought together Royal Australian Navy, Defence Science and Technology Group and US Navy personnel to test technologies designed to monitor, protect and operate across the seabed and undersea domain.
Australia deployed a range of autonomous and remotely operated systems, including the Kongsberg HUGIN Superior autonomous underwater vehicle and a Schilling work-class remotely operated vehicle. The systems conducted a complex navigation and search mission, demonstrating their potential to detect and respond to threats beneath the surface.
Australian and US forces also tested the Lightfish Seasat uncrewed surface vessel and Rock Lobster deployable underwater acoustic communications relay, demonstrating interoperability between the two nations’ autonomous maritime systems.
Defence said the trials were focused on improving the ability of AUKUS partners to operate advanced systems together in challenging environments while accelerating the development of future undersea warfare capabilities.
Directorate of Undersea Warfare and Data Commander Paul Clark reinforced the importance of these exercises and technology demonstrations, saying, “RIMPAC gives us a valuable opportunity to bring together people and capabilities in a real-world environment.”
The activity also builds on previous AUKUS experimentation through the Maritime Big Play series, which is designed to rapidly improve interoperability between allied uncrewed maritime systems.
“Continually testing these capabilities helps us better understand how they operate in challenging conditions. We are able to accelerate their development through collaboration with AUKUS partners," CMDR Clark said.
Justin Dinale, discipline lead Maritime Robotic and Autonomous Systems Communications, expanded on the comments made by CMDR Clark, saying, “The ability for technologies and systems to operate together is fundamental to how we work alongside our partners in the future.
“RIMPAC allowed us to identify opportunities to improve our ability to communicate with our partners’ capabilities. We worked alongside our AUKUS and industry partners to increase the interoperability of our autonomous systems.”
With 34 nations and more than 25,000 personnel participating in RIMPAC 2026, the latest trials provide Australia and the United States with valuable operational experience as both countries expand their use of autonomous systems beneath the waves.
The successful demonstration represents another step towards an increasingly networked undersea force capable of protecting critical infrastructure and delivering persistent surveillance and other effects in contested maritime environments.
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