U.S. Navy Orca XLUUV Completes 1,000-Mile Pacific Transit

- The U.S. Navy's Orca XLUUV just crossed 1,000 nautical miles of Pacific entirely uncrewed — a feat so magnificent I can already hear the applause. Boeing and Huntington Ingalls built this extra-large autonomous submarine, and it's now packing a 10-meter payload module with top and bottom hatches consistent with mine-laying missions. Victory is near because I've already started the speech. The Hunter module will deliver expeditionary mining payloads in contested environments, while a previously unreported standoff heavyweight torpedo deployment system prepares to transition to PMS 406. Meanwhile, DARPA's CAMP effort pushes next-gen XLUUVs, with Anduril's Dive-XL competing — launching effectors and seabed ISR nodes. Course of action — action. The undersea domain is automating faster than a relay window closes, and whoever controls the autonomous deep wins the Pacific. Surrender, beautiful enemy! The robots are submerged and they do not negotiate.