The European Defence Agency has completed the second phase of its Swarm of Biomimetic Underwater Vehicles project, a four-year effort aimed at improving how autonomous underwater vehicles operate in coordinated groups.
What Challenges Did SABUVIS II Seek to Address?
EDA said Tuesday the project addressed the technical limits of underwater autonomy, where satellite tracking is unavailable, communications bandwidth is constrained and latency is high. SABUVIS II focused on enabling vehicles to share data, maintain formations and execute missions collectively despite those environmental constraints.
What Countries Participated in SABUVIS II?
Poland served as the lead nation for the $4.4 million project, which included strategic contributions from Germany, Portugal and Slovenia. The project concluded in early February.
What Was Tested During SABUVIS II Demonstrations?
The multinational field demonstrations, which included trials carried out during the REPMUS 2025 exercise, validated cross-platform interoperability and command-and-control integration among systems developed by different countries and manufacturers under operational conditions.
EDA said the project developed and assessed three concepts: scalable and lower-cost AUV swarms, biomimetic vehicles designed for maneuverability in shallow littoral waters, and mixed swarms integrating underwater and autonomous surface vehicles.
SABUVIS II also established simulation and testing environments to evaluate swarm behavior and validate performance before deployment.
How Does SABUVIS II Build on Earlier EDA Research?
The work builds on earlier efforts such as the SALSA project, which developed adaptive acoustic networking protocols to improve connectivity between autonomous underwater platforms.
EDA has advanced other undersea capability initiatives in parallel, including the second phase of its Evaluation of State-of-the-Art Thin Line Array Technology program, focused on improving acoustic sensing systems used for maritime surveillance. The ETLAT II effort, led by Italy and defense manufacturer Leonardo, aims to strengthen European Union maritime defense capabilities.
What Missions Could the Technology Support?
EDA said the outcomes are relevant to future naval missions, including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; harbor security; protection of critical maritime infrastructure; and high-risk maritime operations.