Type 93
A planned Royal Navy class of extra-large uncrewed underwater vessel named in the 2026 Defence Investment Plan.
On 16 July 2026 the Ministry of Defence confirmed Type 93, a large uncrewed underwater vehicle grown from the Excalibur programme, as one of four uncrewed Royal Navy classes, the same week the US Navy handed a comparable design brief to Kongsberg Discovery.
Last refreshed: 22 September 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
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Type 93 is the Royal Navy's planned extra-large uncrewed underwater vehicle, formalising work already under way through the Excalibur development programme for long-endurance underwater surveillance.
As one of four uncrewed classes covering surface, subsurface and anti-submarine roles, Type 93 extends the Royal Navy's underwater sensing reach without committing a crewed submarine to long, quiet patrols. Its lineage in Excalibur gives it a firmer engineering base than its sibling classes, most of which start from a design brief rather than an existing trial vehicle.
No contractor, unit cost or in-service date beyond the shared 2030 programme aspiration has been attached to Type 93 specifically, so its progress will be measured against Excalibur's own trial results rather than a fresh procurement competition.
What is the Royal Navy's Type 93 class?
How does Type 93 relate to the Excalibur programme?
How does Type 93 compare to the US Navy's CAMP submarine drone?
Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 22 September 2026. Editorial standards.