CNO charts schedule for hybrid manned/unmanned fleet

The US Navy plans significant investments for large unmanned surface vessel programmes. (US Department of Defense)

The US Navy’s (USN’s) most senior uniformed officer has outlined her planned timeline to transition the surface navy to a new hybrid force structure mixing manned and unmanned vessels.

Speaking at the AFCEA International and US Naval Institute WEST 2024 conference in San Diego, California, on 13 February, Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Admiral Lisa Franchetti said the navy road map was looking out across three five-year Future Years Defense Programs (FYDPs).

Having already introduced unmanned underwater vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicles to service, the USN is now planning to invest significantly in a new generation of large unmanned surface vessels (LUSVs) designed to augment and complement manned surface combatants within a future hybrid fleet construct.