Ghost Shark Uncrewed Submarine Shown Launching Aerial Drones For The First Time

By Thomas Newdick , Tyler Rogoway

Published Oct 21, 2026 1:10 PM EDT

New footage of Australia’s Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous underwater vehicle (XL-AUV) provides the first look at how the vehicle launches aerial drones, while also revealing a pair of deployable masts not previously seen on the platform. The video comes soon after we got a glimpse of some of the payloads that the Royal Australian Navy plans to integrate on the new uncrewed submarine, as you can read more about in our coverage here .

"Ghost Shark has teeth now." – @PatConroy1 , Australia's Minister for Defence Industry. The @ausgov and @Australian_Navy confirmed the payloads that our Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous submarine carries: sea mines, logistics caches, and air-launched effects for ISR and strike.… pic.twitter.com/IALPFpOf4V — Anduril Industries (@anduriltech) October 21, 2026

"Ghost Shark has teeth now." – @PatConroy1 , Australia's Minister for Defence Industry. The @ausgov and @Australian_Navy confirmed the payloads that our Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous submarine carries: sea mines, logistics caches, and air-launched effects for ISR and strike.… pic.twitter.com/IALPFpOf4V

Published by manufacturer Anduril, the footage shows a Ghost Shark surfacing before doors on the top of its hull slide open. A launcher consisting of 12 angled tubes then emerges from drone sub. Another launcher is seen in the other upper payload bay, but is not raised in the video. While it appears to be of the same type, the second launcher could also have a different arrangement of tubes.

While the 12-tube ALTIUS aerial drone launcher on the left is seen elevating, the launcher on the right remains lowered. Anduril/screencap

The footage subsequently cuts to an ALTIUS-type drone being launched from one of the tubes, with Ghost Shark itself remaining surfaced.

A Ghost Shark launches an ALTIUS aerial drone from a raised 12-tube launcher. Anduril/screencap

The sequence provides a much more concrete look at the aerial-drone deployment concept — or one of them — than the photographs released previously, which offered the first public view inside Ghost Shark’s side payload bay.

The Australian government has said the vehicle is being developed for missions including persistent intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR) and strike, but the precise configuration and operational capabilities of its weapons and how they are launched had not previously been disclosed.

The video does not identify which ALTIUS variant is being launched. However, Ghost Shark has previously been displayed at the Altus factory in Australia alongside derivatives of the ALTIUS-600 family. This includes the ALTIUS-600 for ISR, as well as the ALTIUS-600M, which is designed for strike missions. You can read more about this family of drones here . As we noted before , unarmed variants of the ALTIUS-600 are designed to be optionally expendable, and can be reused, although in many scenarios that isn’t possible. In terms of capabilities, the ALTIUS-600 has a maximum range of around 275 miles and can remain airborne for at least four hours, according to Anduril.

Examples of the Anduril ALTIUS-600 displayed during a press conference at the Anduril Australia factory in Sydney, New South Wales. Australian Department of Defense

Ghost Shark can clearly deploy a substantial number of aerial drones — two dozen in this case – in a single sortie, enabling swarms to be launched far from an adversary’s coastline. Depending on the drones carried and how they are employed, such a swarm could provide broad-area surveillance, wreak havoc on enemy air defenses via electronic warfare, or attack targets.

The concept could also have value below the threshold of open conflict. A mass launch of relatively inexpensive drones could be used to probe or stimulate an adversary’s air defenses, prompting them to reveal their locations, signatures and operating procedures for collection by other intelligence assets or even some of the drones themselves. There is a precedent for exactly this going back to the early Cold War years, which you can read all about here .

Ghost Shark could carry these capabilities deep into contested waters clandestinely without putting a crew at risk, unleashing their payload even at standoff distances or right next to the shore to give the drones maximum penetration and loitering time over target, depend on the risk profile.

At the same time, while the 12-tube launchers fit neatly into Ghost Shark’s hull architecture, the modular nature of the design means that the same space can accommodate many other payloads, which might include alternative types of aerial drones. This could be fewer larger, more capable types, or far more plentiful smaller, less capable ones.

The other notable development in the video is the appearance of two deployable masts. Their presence is particularly interesting given Anduril’s emphasis on designing uncrewed underwater vehicles without the kinds of protruding mast arrangements associated with traditional submarine designs. On UUVs, masts like these are generally used to support sensors, communications, and propulsion systems.

Looking aft, with the two masts raised. Anduril/screencap

“We don’t have big masts running down the backbone of our vehicle that a lot of other designs do that then preclude the ability for the payloads to come out in different directions… of the payload module itself,” Dr. Shane Arnott, Senior Vice President for Engineering at Anduril and the company’s maritime lead, told TWZ back in 2024.

“So we have… in effect, unlimited flexibility in this design, just the way that we’ve configured the vehicle and the payload bay itself could be almost anything within a size configuration that you can dream up,” Arnott added. “We haven’t encountered a crazy idea yet from a customer that … we can’t fit.”

The first Ghost Shark for the Royal Australian Navy. In this earlier view, the retractable masts are not visible. Australian Department of Defense

The larger mast that lies flat is actually a fairly traditional one for large UUVs. It lies along the centerline of the hull when stowed, between the upper payload bays. It then deploys upward in an arm-like motion and carries an antenna. The smaller mast is located farther aft and rises vertically from its own housing. Potentially, the tall mast supports a line-of-sight datalink to the drones, while the other being a satcom array, such as one connected to Starlink/Starshield, sending those drone feed to controllers anywhere in the world. It’s also worth noting that Ghost Shark could just launch the drones and send them on their missions autonomously, without needing to stay surfaced at all. Other arrangements could exist, as well, such as Ghost Shark launching a dozen drones and one larger one capable of carrying its own satcom terminal. This would allow direct control of the drones by operators anywhere in the world without Ghost Shark remaining present near the surface.

Ghost Shark also has a lower-profile swept-back sail on top of its nose section, not visible in the video. Overall, the vessel would retain a very small signature above the waterline while connected to the drones, making it hard to detect by radar and electro-optical imaging systems.

Ghost Shark submerged, with its reflection seen on the surface. This provides a good view of the retracted masts and how they fit neatly with the closed upper payload doors. Anduril/screencap

The new video follows the recent disclosure of three payload concepts for the Royal Australian Navy’s Ghost Shark: the deployment of up to 12 sea mines in a mission, the placement of supply caches on the seabed, and the launch of aerial drones. Those capabilities expand the vehicle beyond conventional underwater surveillance into a broader range of undersea warfare missions.

The mine-delivery option could support operations in strategically important maritime areas, while seabed caches could provide a means of positioning equipment and supplies for later retrieval. The aerial-drone capability, as seen in the new video, would allow Ghost Shark to extend surveillance beyond the reach of its own sensors or potentially deliver strike effects without exposing crewed platforms to the same risks. Having 12 ALTIUS drones ready to launch (and potentially the same number in the adjacent upper payload bay) would allow multiple missions to be undertaken.

The modular design is central to Ghost Shark. As we have discussed , the payload section can be configured using different hull sections and mission-specific systems, allowing the same underlying vehicle design to accommodate different requirements. The newly revealed launcher provides a first look at how at least one of those payload concepts may be implemented in practice.

A rendering of a Ghost Shark in Royal Australian Navy service. Australian Department of Defense

Australia has committed substantial resources to autonomous and uncrewed undersea warfare capabilities, with a planned fleet of Australian-designed and built Ghost Shark vehicles serving alongside the Speartooth large uncrewed underwater vehicle (LUUV) and the BlueBottle uncrewed surface vessel (USV). The Ghost Shark program is also part of the broader AUKUS effort to develop advanced maritime technologies alongside the United Kingdom and the United States.

The new footage provides a clearer picture of the practical design choices behind that effort. Most notably, how the underwater vehicle can operationalize its aerial drone launching capability and the quantity of those systems it could potentially deploy very quickly before slipping back below the waves.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

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作者：托马斯·纽迪克、泰勒·罗戈威

发布于美国东部时间2026年10月21日下午1:10

澳大利亚“幽灵鲨”超大型自主水下航行器（XL-AUV）的最新视频首次展示了该航行器如何发射无人机，同时还揭示了其平台上此前未曾出现过的两根可展开式桅杆。此前不久，我们刚刚看到了澳大利亚皇家海军计划集成到这款新型无人潜艇上的一些有效载荷，您可以点击此处阅读我们的相关报道。

“幽灵鲨现在有牙了。”——澳大利亚国防工业部长帕特·康罗伊（@PatConroy1）。澳大利亚政府（@ausgov）和澳大利亚海军（@Australian_Navy）确认了我们的幽灵鲨超大型自主潜艇携带的有效载荷：水雷、后勤补给以及用于情报、监视和侦察（ISR）和打击的空射武器…… pic.twitter.com/IALPFpOf4V — Anduril Industries (@anduriltech) 2026年10月21日

“幽灵鲨现在有牙齿了。”——澳大利亚国防工业部长帕特·康罗伊（@PatConroy1）。澳大利亚政府（@ausgov）和澳大利亚海军（@Australian_Navy）确认了我们的“幽灵鲨”超大型自主潜艇携带的有效载荷：水雷、后勤补给以及用于情报、监视和侦察（ISR）和打击的空射武器…… pic.twitter.com/IALPFpOf4V

这段由制造商Anduril发布的视频显示，一艘“幽灵鲨”无人潜艇浮出水面，艇体顶部的舱门随即滑开。一个由12根倾斜发射管组成的发射器从潜艇中伸出。视频中还可以看到另一个位于上部有效载荷舱内的发射器，但并未升起。虽然看起来类型相同，但第二个发射器的发射管排列方式也可能有所不同。

左侧的12管ALTIUS空中无人机发射器正在升空，而右侧的发射器则保持下降状态。Anduril/截图

随后画面切换到一架 ALTIUS 型无人机从其中一个管道中发射出去，而“幽灵鲨”号本身则仍然浮在水面上。

一架幽灵鲨战机从一个架设的12管发射器中发射了一架ALTIUS无人机。Anduril/截图

与之前发布的照片​​相比，这一系列照片更具体地展现了无人机部署概念（或其中一种概念），而之前发布的照片​​首次向公众展示了“幽灵鲨”无人机侧面有效载荷舱的内部情况。

澳大利亚政府表示，该车辆正在开发用于执行持续情报、监视、侦察 (ISR) 和打击等任务，但其武器的具体配置和作战能力以及发射方式此前尚未公开。

视频并未指明此次发布的是哪款ALTIUS无人机。不过，“幽灵鲨”（Ghost Shark）此前曾在澳大利亚的ALTIUS工厂与ALTIUS-600系列的其他衍生机型一同展出，其中包括用于情报、监视和侦察（ISR）的ALTIUS-600，以及专为打击任务设计的ALTIUS-600M。您可以在这里阅读更多关于该系列无人机的信息。正如我们之前提到的，ALTIUS-600的非武装版本设计为可选择性消耗品，可以重复使用，但在许多情况下这是不可能的。根据Anduril公司的数据，ALTIUS-600的最大航程约为275英里，续航时间至少为4小时。

在位于新南威尔士州悉尼的安杜里尔澳大利亚工厂举行的新闻发布会上，展示了安杜里尔ALTIUS-600的样品。澳大利亚国防部

“幽灵鲨”无人机系统显然能够在一次出击中部署大量无人机——在本例中为二十多架——从而能够从远离敌方海岸线的地方发起集群攻击。根据所搭载无人机的型号和使用方式，这样的无人机集群可以提供大范围监视、通过电子战对敌方防空系统造成严重破坏，或对目标发起攻击。

这一概念在公开冲突爆发前也具有价值。大规模投放相对廉价的无人机可以用来探测或干扰敌方的防空系统，迫使其暴露位置、特征和操作程序，以便其他情报机构甚至无人机自身收集这些信息。早在冷战初期就有过类似的先例，您可以在这里阅读相关内容。

“幽灵鲨”无人机可以秘密地将这些能力带入敌对水域深处，而不会让船员面临风险，即使在远距离或紧邻海岸的地方释放有效载荷，也能使无人机最大限度地渗透目标并停留更长时间，具体取决于风险状况。

同时，虽然12管发射器能够完美地融入“幽灵鲨”号的船体结构，但其模块化设计意味着相同的空间可以容纳许多其他有效载荷，包括其他类型的无人机。这些无人机可以是数量较少但性能更强的大型无人机，也可以是数量更多但性能较弱的小型无人机。

视频中另一个值得注意的亮点是出现了两根可展开的桅杆。考虑到安杜里尔公司一直致力于设计不带传统潜艇那种突出桅杆结构的无人水下航行器，这两根桅杆的出现就显得尤为引人注目。在无人水下航行器上，这类桅杆通常用于支撑传感器、通信和推进系统。

从船尾望去，两根桅杆都已升起。Anduril/截图

“我们的车辆主干上没有像许多其他设计那样竖立大型桅杆，这样就无法使有效载荷从有效载荷模块本身的不同方向伸出，”安杜里尔公司工程高级副总裁兼海事负责人沙恩·阿诺特博士在 2024 年告诉 TWZ。

“所以实际上，我们的设计拥有无限的灵活性，车辆和有效载荷舱本身的配置方式几乎可以满足您能想到的任何尺寸配置，”阿诺特补充道。“我们还没有遇到过客户提出的任何疯狂想法……我们无法实现。”

澳大利亚皇家海军首艘“幽灵鲨”反潜巡逻艇。在这张早期照片中，可伸缩桅杆尚未可见。澳大利亚国防部

较大的扁平桅杆实际上是大型无人水下航行器（UUV）的常见配置。收起时，它位于船体中心线，在上部有效载荷舱之间。展开时，它会像手臂一样向上伸展，并携带天线。较小的桅杆位于更靠后的位置，从其自身的舱室垂直升起。较大的桅杆可能用于支持与无人机的视距数据链路，而较小的桅杆则可能用于连接卫星通信阵列（例如连接到星链/星盾的阵列），将无人机的数据传输到世界各地的控制中心。值得注意的是，“幽灵鲨”号可以直接发射无人机并使其自主执行任务，完全无需停留在水面。此外，还可以采用其他方案，例如“幽灵鲨”号发射十几架无人机和一架能够携带自身卫星通信终端的大型无人机。这样，世界各地的操作员就可以直接控制这些无人机，而无需“幽灵鲨”号停留在水面附近。

“幽灵鲨”号的船首上方还有一个低矮的后掠式帆状结构，视频中无法看到。总体而言，该船在与无人机连接时，水线以上的信号特征非常小，难以被雷达和光电成像系统探测到。

幽灵鲨号潜入水中，水面上映出它的倒影。这清晰地展现了收起的桅杆以及它们如何与关闭的上部有效载荷舱门完美契合。Anduril/截图

这段新视频紧随澳大利亚皇家海军“幽灵鲨”水下机器人的三种有效载荷概念之后发布：单次任务部署多达12枚水雷、在海底投放补给箱以及发射无人机。这些能力将使该机器人的作战能力从传统的水下监视扩展到更广泛的水下作战任务。

布雷投放方案可为战略要地海域的行动提供支持，而海底补给箱则可用于部署设备和物资以便后续回收。正如新视频所示，无人机作战能力将使“幽灵鲨”号能够将监视范围扩展到自身传感器探测范围之外，或在不使载人平台面临相同风险的情况下实施打击。12架ALTIUS无人机随时待命（相邻的上部有效载荷舱内可能也配备相同数量的无人机）将支持执行多项任务。

模块化设计是“幽灵鲨”运载火箭的核心。正如我们之前讨论过的，有效载荷舱段可以采用不同的船体部件和任务专用系统进行配置，从而使同一基础运载火箭设计能够满足不同的需求。新近发布的运载火箭首次展示了其中一种有效载荷概念的实际应用方式。

澳大利亚皇家海军服役的幽灵鲨战机效果图。澳大利亚国防部

澳大利亚已投入大量资源发展自主式无人水下作战能力，计划建造一支由澳大利亚自主设计和制造的“幽灵鲨”水下航行器舰队，与“矛牙”大型无人水下航行器（LUUV）和“蓝瓶”无人水面艇（USV）协同作战。“幽灵鲨”项目也是澳大利亚与英国和美国共同开展的“AUKUS”先进海洋技术研发合作项目的一部分。

这段新视频更清晰地展现了该项目背后的实际设计考量。最值得注意的是，它展示了水下航行器如何运作其无人机发射能力，以及在重新潜入水下之前，它能够快速部署多少架无人机。

联系作者：thomas@thewarzone.com

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