Unmanned underwater vehicles supported during mine countermeasures exercise by HII
NewsJune 19, 2026
NEWPORT NEWS, Virginia. HII provided field-support personnel for a multinational mine countermeasures exercise in New Zealand involving HII REMUS 300 unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and ODYSSEY autonomy software, the company announced in a statement.
The exercise, known as NAUTILUS, was hosted by the Royal New Zealand Navy’s dive and hydrographic team, HMNZS MATATAUA, the statement reads. The Royal Australian Navy’s mine countermeasures cadre also took part in the exercise at Tauranga Bay in northern New Zealand, according to the company.
The training included expeditionary operations involving beach launch and recovery, deployment of REMUS 300 UUVs from Littoral Maneuver Craft, and use of ODYSSEY Autonomy Mission Planning Software, the statement adds.
HII states that the Royal Australian Navy is expected to accept several REMUS 300 UUVs for mine countermeasures operations, and the exercise gave sailors initial familiarization with the systems.
HII field-support personnel were integrated with the exercise team to support training and vehicle availability, the company says. The training also involved operators from New Zealand and Australia working in an expeditionary environment, according to the statement.
