L3Harris advances Iver4 900 for Attack Submarine fleet
L3Harris is moving ahead with production of the Iver4 900 autonomous undersea vehicle for the U.S. Navy's attack submarine fleet. The torpedo tube launch and recovery drone is being developed under a previously unknown Defense Innovation Unit effort and is already being proved in exercises with the Navy.
The system is intended to give attack submarines an untethered undersea drone that can travel dozens of miles from the boat and return. JR Gear, vice president and general manager of Integrated Systems and Encryption, said the work is moving from development into evaluation and early operational use.
JR Gear on Navy exercises
During the Sea Air Space 2026 Symposium in National Harbor, Maryland, Gear said L3Harris is iterating the design and concept of operations with the Navy through at-sea availabilities with Virginia-class submarines. He said the company is working through what the service wants the system to do before it is delivered more broadly.
“We’re proving them with the U.S. Navy in exercises. We’re iterating with them—what’s the capability [the Navy] needs?” Gear said. He also said, “Lets let the sailor do the mission and concentrate on the threat” and “Lets not have the sailor worry about how to fly, drive, or steer.”
Iver4 900 payloads
The Iver4 900 carries swappable payloads along the side of the vehicle, in the nose and in the tail. Those payloads include sonar arrays, seabed mapping systems, minesweeping capabilities and other third-party platforms. L3Harris says the drone is meant to perform mine warfare, forward intelligence and seabed mapping missions as an underwater loyal wingman.
The vehicle runs on lithium-ion batteries and can operate independently of the submarine for 16 to 24 hours. With a mission minimal payload, it can stay out for 40 hours on one charge.
Defense Innovation Unit effort
The Defense Innovation Unit has led development for the Navy so far, and contracts have been signed to deliver several units to the fleet for evaluation and early operational use. The effort is aimed at multiple classes of attack submarines, not just one hull type, which points to a wider Navy review before any broader fielding decision.
For submarine crews, the immediate change is not a finished fleetwide capability but a live test program that is moving into production and evaluation at the same time. The remaining question is how quickly the Navy turns those trial units into a routine tool for attack submarine missions.
