Huntington Ingalls Industries completes first ROMULUS 151 hull
Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) and Breaux Brothers Enterprises have successfully finished the structural build of the initial ROMULUS 151 unmanned surface vessel. The hull has been turned over, paving the way for work to commence on the deck and pilothouse.
Multiple ROMULUS 151 Platforms Under Construction
The vessel is just one of five ROMULUS 151 platforms currently in the works at two shipyards located in Louisiana. Breaux Brothers is responsible for constructing four at its New Iberia facility, while Halimar Shipyard is working on the fifth vessel in Morgan City.
Advancing the ROMULUS Program
This significant milestone propels the ROMULUS program further into physical production following the development of its autonomous technology and modular design. HII is merging its autonomy systems and program management with well-established commercial shipbuilding capabilities in Louisiana.
ROMULUS stands as a collection of artificial intelligence-enabled unmanned surface vessels constructed around an open architecture. These vessels utilize HII’s Odyssey Advanced Autonomy Solutions platform to facilitate autonomous maritime operations.
The modular design of ROMULUS enables the configuration of sensors, payloads, and mission systems to meet various operational requirements. HII is dedicated to developing the platform to cater to the needs of the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, joint forces, and allied customers.
With potential missions encompassing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, mine countermeasures, and strike operations, the vessels also have the capacity to support counter-unmanned systems missions and launch or retrieve unmanned underwater and aerial vehicles.
By embarking on the construction of five vessels, HII establishes a production foundation for transitioning ROMULUS from its design phase into operational hardware. The collaboration with Louisiana shipbuilders not only supports scalable manufacturing but also bolsters future maritime readiness efforts.
