ARMOR Force
Autonomous maritime operations and recovery initiative jointly developed by HII and Babcock for the Royal Navy, centred on subsea uncrewed vehicle deployment and recovery.
Last refreshed: 29 May 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Will ARMOR Force produce a Royal Navy UUV programme of record, or remain a showcase initiative?
Timeline for ARMOR Force
Presented as HII-Babcock joint Royal Navy subsea autonomy initiative at CNE 2026
Autonomous Systems: Land & Sea: US prime digs into UK seabed war- What is the HII and Babcock ARMOR Force programme?
- ARMOR Force is a joint initiative between US shipbuilder HII and British defence company Babcock to deliver autonomous underwater and surface vessels to the Royal Navy. It is based around HII's REMUS UUV family and an enlarged UK facility at Portchester, Hampshire.Source: Naval News
- Has the Royal Navy signed a contract with ARMOR Force?
- As of May 2026, ARMOR Force has not produced a Royal Navy procurement announcement or programme of record. It was showcased at the Combined Naval Event in Farnborough in May 2026 as part of HII and Babcock's pitch to the Royal Navy.Source: Naval News
- Why is the Portchester facility important for UK underwater drones?
- HII's enlarged Portchester facility positions the company as a UK-based manufacturer and support hub rather than a US exporter, which matters for UK sovereign capability requirements. It is the physical anchor of the HII-Babcock ARMOR Force initiative.Source: Naval News
Background
ARMOR Force (Autonomous Maritime Operations and Recovery) is a joint initiative between the American shipbuilder HII and the British defence company Babcock, designed to deliver uncrewed underwater and surface systems to the Royal Navy. It was showcased at the Combined Naval Event in Farnborough in May 2026 alongside the USS Delaware REMUS 600 torpedo-tube demonstration and an enlarged HII European hub at Portchester, Hampshire.
ARMOR Force is structured around HII's autonomous maritime portfolio, including REMUS-family UUVs and surface vessels, integrated with Babcock's established Royal Navy support and maintenance relationships in the UK. The Portchester facility provides the European manufacturing and service footprint that converts HII from a transatlantic exporter into an embedded UK industrial partner, a distinction that matters for UK sovereign capability requirements.
For the Royal Navy, ARMOR Force offers a pathway to torpedo-tube-launched UUV capability at a time when seabed cable protection and mine countermeasures have both risen to strategic priority. The initiative is at the early engagement stage as of May 2026; it has not produced a procurement announcement or a programme of record.
