NEWPORT, R.I. — In Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay, unmanned underwater vehicles bobbed up and down during a three-day exercise designed to test cutting edge technologies for the Navy. The drones ranged from systems that could fit in a backpack to vehicles that required cranes to drop them into the sea. Rear Adm. Moises DelToro III, commander of Naval Undersea Warfare Center, said Aug. 18 that the Annual Naval Technology Exercise is “designed to demonstrate future naval technologies in action today. Naval warfare centers, universities and our industry partners are here showcasing their latest unmanned systems and related technologies in water.” At the exercise — known as ANTX 2016 and hosted by NUWC”s Newport division — scientists and engineers were able to evaluate their technology at the research and development level before the systems become militarized and are integrated at the operational level, he said during a speech on the last day of the exercise.
