The Royal Navy has announced a successful demonstration of its new Excalibur extra-large unmanned underwater vehicle (XLUUV), capable of conducting real-time intelligence missions while being remotely controlled from more than 16,000 kilometres away.
The trial took place during the latest edition of the Talisman Sabre exercises, where Royal Navy personnel based in Australia directed the submarine as it carried out an underwater mission in British waters. This marks the first successful demonstration of a crewless submarine operated remotely across intercontinental distances, a major technological milestone in integrating autonomous systems under the AUKUS security partnership.
Excalibur is the Royal Navy’s first unmanned submarine, designed for long-endurance independent operations and high-risk missions without the need for a human crew.
