SOF WEEK 2026--TAMPA, Fla. Despite the progress made by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and its branches and agencies over the past several years, the U.S. military still faces a number of challenges as it seeks to further the implementation and operation of uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs). Some of these issues are related to the DoD’s acquisition approach and the need to build trust in these uncrewed capabilities. 

SOF WEEK 2026--TAMPA. Aerospace and national-security concern SNC and shipbuilder/systems integrator Fairlead have forged a strategic partnership to domestically produce AEGIR uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), in a move the companies say will bolster U.S. naval dominance, The announcement was made during the SOF Week 2026 show, currently underway in Tampa.  

AUSTIN, Tex. Hyliion Holdings, which develops modular power plant technology, announced that the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have chosen the USX-1 Defiant -- a fully autonomous medium uncrewed surface vessel (USV) -- as a candidate test vessel for Hyliion’s KARNO onboard power-generation technology.

COLUMBIA CITY, Ind. Defense electronics and sonobuoy company Ultra Maritime won a sole source contract with the U.S. Navy to engage in low rate initial production (LRIP) for the AN/SSQ-125B sonobuoy, with support for annual training, peacetime operations, testing expenditures, and inventory support.

TUCSON, Ariz. Raytheon reports that its StormBreaker smart weapon has been approved by the U.S. Navy for operational use on the F/A-18-E/F Super Hornet strike fighter. 

The modular open systems approach (MOSA) mandated by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in 2019 for all new programs and upgrades has been embraced by all the services, including the U.S. Navy, which produced a MOSA Guidebook on how and why to implement MOSA. In this interview I conducted with Jason Thomas, Systems Engineering Lead for the Department of the Navy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, Test and Engineering, at the September 2025 MOSA Industry & Government Summit, we discussed the guidebook, the current momentum of MOSA strategies, and the benefits of MOSA from a systems-engineering perspective. We also explored common misconceptions regarding MOSA, metrics for measuring MOSA success, and what Thomas would like to see from industry regarding MOSA. Edited excerpts follow.

HUDSON, N.H. BAE Systems and the U.S. Navy agreed on a new five-year, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to supply APKWS laser-guidance kits that will equip the U.S. military with tens of thousands of additional low-cost precision munitions. The contract has a maximum value of $1.7 billion, with an initial $322 million order.