Washington – Three U.S. defence companies, iRocket, Arnold Defense and Composite Energy Technologies (CET), have unveiled a concept for an autonomous underwater vehicle equipped with guided missiles to engage aerial and maritime threats. The proposal combines CET’s HADALUS unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), Arnold Defense’s LAND-LGR4 launcher and iRocket’s iRX-100 missiles.
The HADALUS UUV, developed by CET in partnership with Raytheon (an RTX company), measures approximately 34 feet (10.4 metres) long with a six-foot (1.8-metre) cross-section. It features a free-flooded, all-carbon-fibre exoskeleton designed to provide structural strength, corrosion resistance and acoustic transparency.
The underwater vehicle has an endurance of more than 2,000 nautical miles, with an operational depth exceeding 3,000 metres. Its modular Flat Pack design allows multiple vehicles to be transported in a standard 20-foot shipping container and assembled at the deployment site. Its estimated cost is around one-third to one-fifth that of comparable long-endurance UUVs.
Missile Launcher and Testing
The proposed system integrates Arnold Defense’s LAND-LGR4 four-round launcher, capable of carrying up to four 70 mm (2.75-inch) iRX-100 guided missiles developed by iRocket.
The iRX-100 is designed for counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) missions. During a March 2026 test, the missile reached Mach 2 and travelled approximately 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) when fired from an Arnold Defense launcher.
Separately, CET and Raytheon demonstrated HADALUS during a U.S. Navy exercise in August 2026, showcasing its submerged launch and autonomous mission capabilities. The companies developed the underwater prototype in less than 18 months.
Proposed Underwater Missile Capability
The concept aims to use HADALUS as a concealed, mobile launch platform against aerial drones and surface vessels. Promotional footage released by the companies shows the proposed system launching missiles against both types of targets.
However, the companies have not disclosed the specific guidance configuration or how the underwater platform would identify and track targets before launching missiles.
The missile-equipped HADALUS remains at the concept stage. Although the underwater vehicle has undergone demonstrations, the complete combination of the UUV, launcher and iRX-100 missiles has not been reported as undergoing operational testing.
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