QinetiQ and Forcys have announced a new partnership aimed at enhancing the safety, reliability, and certification of Australia’s undersea warfare and autonomous maritime systems. The memorandum of understanding merges QinetiQ’s defense test and evaluation capabilities with Forcys’ specialty in underwater sensing, navigation, and secure communications.
The collaboration focuses on delivering deployable underwater ranges and test systems that allow the Australian Defence Force to trial submarines, AUVs, and unmanned vessels under authentic operational conditions. These capabilities are becoming critical as Australia faces rising undersea threats, including increased submarine activity and the proliferation of autonomous mine and surveillance platforms deployed by near-peer competitors.
Australia has been expanding its maritime test infrastructure in strategic locations such as Jervis Bay and Exmouth. These sites support deep-water and littoral environment evaluations of advanced sonar systems, underwater robotics, and multi-mission autonomous platforms. Real-world testing ensures systems perform effectively in congested and contested maritime zones.
The partnership aligns with Australia’s Defence Strategic Review and AUKUS objectives to accelerate sovereign industrial capability and enhance interoperability with partner navies. The nation is also rapidly integrating autonomous solutions across its fleet, including Sea 129 Phase 4 mine countermeasure AUVs, coastal surveillance UAVs, and remotely operated underwater inspection systems. Technologies from Sonardyne and Chelsea Technologies provide real-time data sharing and multisystem threat detection to round out the capability.
