Ocius Technology has signed agreements to integrate advanced sonar systems from ThayerMahan and Thales Australia across its growing fleet of Australian-made Bluebottle uncrewed surface vessels (USVs). The sonar systems include fully retractable thin-line acoustic arrays (TLAs) which will be deployed to support persistent surface and subsurface intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) as part of the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN’s) recent AUD$176 million Program of Record, as well as Ocius’ ongoing 24/7 operations to the north of Australia for Maritime Border Command. These contracts represent the largest fielded deployments of persistent above water and below water surveillance USW (undersea warfare) missions in the world to date.
Under the Royal Australian Navy’s SEA1200 program to combat undersea threats, Ocius has awarded ThayerMahan, Inc. a contract to deliver 40 Outpost acoustic intelligence payloads with TransparenSea processing software. ThayerMahan’s Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW)-capable sensing payloads and processing software will deploy in a distributed surveillance architecture that will detect, localise and track contacts of interest, delivering data to operators and commanders. The collaboration demonstrates a practical application of AUKUS Pillar II, combining Australian autonomous maritime technology with advanced United States acoustic sensing and processing capabilities.
To support ongoing Australian Maritime Border Command operations to the north of Australia, Ocius has selected Thales Australia’s Australian-manufactured BlueSentry thin line arrays and BlueSentry acoustic processing for integration onto Bluebottles USVs. These operational array systems will be deployed across the Bluebottle fleet, supporting long-endurance maritime surveillance to help protect Australia’s borders and offshore maritime interests.
Bluebottle’s payload-agnostic keel, winch and payload bay architecture enables acoustic array systems from different providers to be selected and configured to meet each customer’s specific mission requirements. Bluebottles are manufactured and equipped with acoustic arrays at Ocius’s production facility in Sydney, Australia.
Robert Dane, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Ocius Technology, said: “In an increasingly contested global environment, Australia requires advanced and proven technologies to address evolving maritime threats. Different missions need different solutions. The Bluebottle is designed as an adaptable payload delivery platform. By integrating complementary acoustic systems from leading Australian and United States technology providers, we can provide customers with the most effective technology suite for their operational needs. These agreements reflect the strength of the systems developed by ThayerMahan and Thales for persistent uncrewed maritime operations. Our approach has always been to test technologies extensively at sea and assess them against real operational requirements. A rigorous evaluation process included comprehensive operational testing, including RAN controlled validation, extended deployments under representative mission conditions and comparisons across four thin line array acoustic providers. The combination of advanced acoustic sensing, renewable-powered endurance and autonomous operations provides Australia with a scalable and cost-effective way to strengthen awareness across our vast maritime domain.”
Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said: “The Ocius Bluebottle is a formidable asset. It’s already providing near persistent, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for Australia, having even remained on station as cyclones rolled through. And now, thanks to this new partnership, this capability will provide enhanced protection of Australia’s vast maritime domain. This is also a great example of a future made in Australia, supporting sovereign manufacturing, Australian jobs and closer collaboration with our international partners. This is Aussie innovation in action. Just as when you see a blue bottle on a beach, or in the water, it’s a signal to stay away. I want potential adversaries to realise when they see an Ocius Bluebottle, it’s also a signal to get out of our ocean.”
Mike Connor, Chief Executive Officer, ThayerMahan, said: “ThayerMahan is proud to be a longstanding technology partner with Ocius, and proud of the advances in next-generation maritime awareness that we have achieved together with our proven autonomous technologies. This contract represents the latest significant advancement in undersea warfare surveillance capability. Our advanced Outpost acoustic intelligence payloads and TransparenSea software will provide the Royal Australian Navy with sensing, processing, and data dissemination technologies that integrate with the Bluebottle uncrewed surface vessel to deliver a highly effective autonomous undersea sensing platform. ThayerMahan’s selection to deliver 40 systems for the SEA1200 program demonstrates how our mature, autonomous acoustic surveillance can provide our allies and partners with persistent scalable maritime domain awareness and actionable intelligence at significantly lower cost while extending coverage across critical operating areas.”
Jeff Connolly, Chief Executive Officer, Thales Australia, said: “Thales Australia’s high-quality sensors at the core of the powerful BlueSentry® arrays are made by our dedicated workforce in our facility in Sydney. These sovereign arrays, deployed on the sovereign Ocius Bluebottle platform will play a key role helping secure our nation and provide a persistent and adaptable surveillance capability. BlueSentry’s heritage is from our systems deployed on the Collins Class submarines, and our enduring commitment to working with defence and our industry partners to innovate to serve the national interest. We look forward to working with Ocius to further strengthen Australia’s sovereign maritime surveillance capability.”
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