AUV Co-operation Pact
General Atomics, Kongsberg Maritime and C & C Technologies have agreed to co-operate on the development of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) and associated technologies. General Atomics (GA) and its affiliates are high-technology development companies in areas ranging from nuclear technologies and advanced defence and energy systems to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), including the Predator, a remotely operated surveillance aircraft. GA is currently active in systems integration for several US Navy programmes, including an Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, an Advanced Arresting Gear, Integrated Fight Through Power Conversion equipment, a Superconducting Homopolar Propulsion Motor, and an Electromagnetic Railgun. C & C Technologies presently operates two Hugin 3000 AUVs and will take delivery of a third, 4500m-depth rated one later this year. C & C Technologies has performed more than 50,000km of commercial survey lines and hundreds of AUV launches and retrievals over the last few years. This co-operation agreement forms a team with the expertise and capabilities required to further develop the technologies, operations, and production necessary to meet the challenges associated with a wide range of applications and system configurations for the AUVs of tomorrow.