Much ink has been spilled regarding the U.S. Navy’s hybrid fleet, a concept first articulated by Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday and embraced by his successor, Adm. Lisa Franchetti. The basics of this initiative were described in the “Force Design 2045” which called for 350 crewed ships and 150 large uncrewed maritime vessels for the “Navy-After-Next.”
This innovative concept was born out of necessity. The concept of hybrid fleet evolved due the U.S. Navy’s ongoing challenge of building enough crewed ships to adequately meet the Navy’s global commitments.
A recent report by the Department of the Navy Science and Technology Board entitled, “The Path Forward on Unmanned Systems,” promises to help accelerate the path to a hybrid fleet by offering a way forward to design, develop and field uncrewed systems, especially uncrewed maritime vessels.