Navy Shifts to Unmanned Surface Vessel Procurement Model

The Navy is abandoning its Modular Attack Surface Craft (MASC) program and instead launching a new marketplace for medium unmanned surface vessels (MUSVs). The marketplace aims to accelerate the delivery of production-ready, mission-capable platforms to the fleet. The first iteration of the marketplace opened today and closes on April 17. The Navy plans to award contracts to industry firms to complete on-water tests and deliver production vessels by the end of FY27. Funding for the marketplace comes from President Donald Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’, which includes $2.1 billion for MUSVs. According to Rebecca Gassler, the Navy’s portfolio acquisition executive for robotic and autonomous systems, the marketplace is designed to provide a recurring and flexible way to procure vessels that meet specific mission profiles.