Rear Adm. Thomas Anderson and Rear Adm. Casey Moton are expected to testify on May 11 for a hearing likely to examine how the US is doing compared to China in producing ships.
During Breaking Defense's recent visit to a UUV manufacturing plant, HII officials stressed their modular design, in line with the Navy's unmanned vision of plug-and-play technologies.
The Navy's goal in creating an "autonomy baseline" is to provide itself the flexibility to plug and play with different industry capabilities onboard the same unmanned vehicles.
The Constellation (FFG-62) is scheduled for delivery in 2026.
The USV Mariner is a direct result of the Strategic Capabilities Office's Project Overlord program. Breaking Defense recently went inside the high-tech vessel.
Sailors operating the USVs at RIMPAC were more concerned about what the drones could do, rather than how they were controlled.
A senior Navy officer is seeking to dispel notions the changes to the LCS program and the frigate program were connected.
The Navy has fixed one ship, but doesn't know how long it'll take to get the full LCS fleet to top speed.
The Navy recently completed a 3-week at-sea testing period for MCM USV and are awaiting the results before moving forward with a full-rate production contract.