Copyright Breaking Defense
SYDNEY — The first of what will be “dozens” of Anduril Ghost Shark Extra Large Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (XL-AUV) for Australia’s navy has rolled off the line at the company’s new manufacturing facility in Sydney, Australia. The announcement came at the new facility’s opening ceremony Friday, which was attended by Australian Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy, the country’s chief of navy Vice Adm. Mark Hammond, Senior Vice-President of Anduril Shane Arnott and Anduril CEO and Chairman Australia David Goodrich. Conroy noted at the ceremony that the XL-AUV went from concept to reality in less than three years, with all three prototypes delivered on budget and ahead of schedule. The latest Ghost Shark was delivered under a 1.7 billion AUD (1.1 billion USD) contract announced just seven weeks ago, according to Anduril. “Ghost Shark is an exemplar of how the Government and Defence is partnering with innovative companies to rapidly deliver capability to the warfighter,” Conroy said. Goodrich added, “Today marks a defining moment in our mission to bring sovereign undersea capability to Australia. With the opening of this new facility, we are not only building local infrastructure and workforce — we are investing in innovation, in partnerships, and in the future defence of our nation.” The XL-AUV is ready for sea acceptance testing ahead of planned delivery to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in January 2026. Anduril expects the facility to ramp up Ghost Shark production at the facility to full-scale production levels in 2026 from the current Low Rate Production levels. The company will deliver the fleet of Ghost Sharks over the next five years to the RAN, with production undertaken at the purpose-built facility which can also produce the Dive-XL, Ghost Shark’s commercial baseline vehicle. The facility features integrated robotic production, AI ground vehicles and a custom test tank for in-water verification of buoyancy, electrical systems and safety before sea trials. The company is also looking to produce Ghost Sharks for allies and partner nations in Sydney in the future, pending Australian government export approval. Anduril originally signed a co-development contract with the RAN and Australia’s Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG) in May 2022 to produce three prototype XL-AUVs over three years. The first prototype Ghost Shark was delivered in 2024, with the program completing the deliveries on budget and on time. Australia plans to use the platform for stealthy long-range intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and strike operations, complementing its future surface combatant fleet as well as the nuclear‑powered submarines that will be delivered under the AUKUS pact.
