Raytheon Barracuda Naval Mine Killer Achieves Development Milestone
Raytheon has completed the technical data package of the Barracuda countermine device, achieving a major development goal.
Raytheon has been developing the system since 2018 under an $83-million US Navy contract, with deployment expected in 2026.
A total of 128 Barracudas are being built: 63 for contractor trials and 65 for US Navy trials, according to Seapower.
Sea Mine Assassin
The Barracuda is an expendable, semi-autonomous unmanned, underwater vehicle that searches, identifies, and destroys bottom, near-surface, and drifting mines.
It features a kill mechanism, propulsion systems, sensors, and a communications buoy. Four water jets propel the system near a suspected mine identified by the AN/AQS-20C sonar mine countermeasures mission system.
It receives target GPS coordinates through a tethered acoustic communication data link.
The camera and sonar are mounted on its nose, enabling target confirmation through human operators.
