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Large Scale Vehicle - LSV 2

Last updated: 10 Nov 2020

Description
The world's largest unmanned autonomous submarine.  

Features
LSV 2 Cutthroat offers a cost effective and scalable research and development platform which enables advanced research and development in the areas of submarine hydroacoustics and hydrodynamics.  

Background
LSV 2 Cutthroat provides submarine design engineers a readily available submarine platform to install and test advanced submarine technologies.

Cutthroat -- a 205-ton, battery-operated, large-scale submarine test vehicle -- is a 1/3 scale model of the Virginia-class attack submarine and is used to affordably explore and test emerging technologies while conducting physics-based experiments. Cutthroat was designed with specific emphasis toward supporting technology insertion into current and future U.S. Navy submarines.

LSV 2 provides the capability to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of new technologies that have resulted in major improvements in performance for the Virginia class and is now being modified to support the development of the nation's next strategic ballistic submarine, the Columbia-class SSBN.

Cutthroat has been operating at the Acoustic Research Detachment in Bayview, Idaho, located along Lake Pend Oreille, since its delivery in 2001. The facility is operated by the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division.  

General Characteristics Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding and General Dynamics Electric Boat
Propulsion: Electric drive; 3,000 shaft horsepower (shp) plant coupled with electric motor controller, expandable to 6,000 shp with additional controller modules.
Length: 111 feet (33.83 meters)
Beam: 10 feet (3.05 meters)
Displacement: 205 tons
Armament: None
Ships: Cutthroat (LSV 2) - Christened Nov. 15, 2000, launched July 23, 2002

Point of Contact
Naval Sea System Command
Naval Surface Warfare Center

Carderock Division
9500 MacArthur Boulevard
West Bethesda, MD
20817-5700

(202) 781-4123

 

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