HII's UK Facility Expansion Boosts Unmanned Systems Presence in Europe

Huntington Ingalls Industries HII recently stated that it has doubled the size of its unmanned systems facility in Portchester, U.K. This expansion strengthens its footprint in the country and increases support capacity for the U.K. Royal Navy and European operators of REMUS unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).

HII Grows European Unmanned Presence With UK Expansion

HII’s expanded Portchester facility strengthens its U.K. and European presence by increasing support capacity for unmanned systems. The site enhances maintenance, training, logistics and sustainment for REMUS UUV operators while preparing the region for the deployment of ROMULUS family of unmanned surface vessels from 2026. As a European hub for HII’s Mission Technologies division, it enables closer collaboration with U.K., European and U.S. defense partners, improving responsiveness and operational readiness.

The expansion also supports advanced capabilities such as artificial intelligence, C5ISR, electronic warfare and fleet modernization. The facility will collaborate closely with HII’s global engineering, manufacturing, training and mission support teams to ensure seamless alignment and effective program execution.

HII’s Leadership in UUVs

UUVs are increasingly used for high-risk maritime missions such as mine countermeasures and port security. Per a Mordor Intelligence report, rising investments in undersea combat capabilities are driving strong demand for advanced UUVs, with the unmanned sea systems market projected to witness a CAGR of 13.78% between 2025 and 2030. This favorable market outlook positions Huntington Ingalls, the world’s largest UUV manufacturer, to benefit meaningfully.

HII has delivered REMUS UUVs to 30 countries, including 14 NATO members. The REMUS platform supports critical naval missions such as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, mine countermeasures, anti-submarine warfare and electronic warfare. These autonomous systems can function on their own or in coordination with crewed platforms such as Virginia-class nuclear submarines, extending their operational reach.

Opportunities for Other Stocks

A few other stocks that can gain from the expanding Unmanned Sea Systems market are BAE Systems plc BAESY, Leidos Holdings, Inc. LDOS and General Dynamics Corp. GD.

BAE Systems’ Riptide UUV-12 is a highly flexible platform built to accommodate larger, power-intensive payloads and diverse mission needs. Its capabilities include RF signal collection, active acoustics, autonomous operations and advanced navigation.

BAESY boasts a long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate of 14.57%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 sales is pegged at $44.09 billion, which indicates a rise of 54.9%.

Leidos’ Sea Dart is a cost-efficient, high-performance uncrewed undersea vehicle designed with modularity and adaptability to support a wide range of U.S. Navy and commercial missions.

LDOS boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 11.62%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 sales is pegged at $17.80 billion, which indicates a rise of 3.4%.

General Dynamics’ Bluefin-9 UUV offers high-resolution data collection, advanced navigation and rapid mission turnaround in a portable two-person configuration. Equipped with tightly integrated commercial off-the-shelf sensors, it provides best-in-class imagery while collecting critical bathymetric and environmental data.

GD stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 13.16%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 sales is pegged at $54.11 billion, which indicates a rise of 4.1%.

HII Stock Price Movement

In the past month, HII shares have rallied 25.1% compared with the industry’s 5.3% growth.

HII’s Zacks Rank

Huntington Ingalls currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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