Leidos Australia and Kongsberg Defence Australia have signed an MoU to explore integrating the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) with Leidos’ Sea Archer and Longbow uncrewed surface vessels. The initiative seeks to demonstrate how pairing advanced USVs with the NSM could expand maritime strike capabilities by increasing range, responsiveness, and mission flexibility. The NSM is a sea-skimming, precision-guided cruise missile capable of autonomous target recognition and advanced terminal maneuvers to evade air defenses, with a range beyond 300 km. The Sea Archer USV, developed in Australia, features modular architecture, AI-driven autonomy, speeds up to 40 knots, a 1,500-nautical-mile range, and payload capacity exceeding 900 kg. The larger Longbow variant carries up to 3,000 kg and is powered by four 300-hp OXE diesel engines, enabling ranges above 2,750 nautical miles.
