Partnership positions Boston-based Blue Water Autonomy to deliver a long-range autonomous vessel for U.S. defence operations.
Damen has signed a new licence agreement with Boston-based technology and shipbuilding specialist Blue Water Autonomy, paving the way for construction of the first vessel under the partnership. The Liberty Class, a 60-metre steel autonomous vessel developed jointly by the two firms. The design delivers an endurance of more than 10,000 nautical miles and a payload capacity exceeding 150 tonnes.
Construction is scheduled to begin at Conrad Shipyard in March 2026. The first vessel is expected to be completed for the U.S. Navy later this year under a programme of record.
As the U.S. Navy looks to expand fleet capacity, accelerating the deployment of unmanned systems that complement traditional crewed ships has become a critical effort. Liberty’s design supports a range of missions, including missile, sensor, and logistics payloads, and offers the Navy a ship immediately producible with existing U.S. shipyards and commercial supply chains.
The Liberty class will be built on Damen’s Stan Patrol 6009 hull design. Blue Water selected the design due to its Axe Bow, a distinctive, vertical bow that slices cleanly through the waves, minimising slamming and allowing more gradual wave re-entry. With over 300 Axe Bow vessels operating globally, the hull shape offers proven performance. The proven design reduces technical risk, allowing Blue Water to focus engineering on re-architecting the vessel’s internal systems for autonomous operation. The resulting platform retains the hull’s performance, payload capacity, and seakeeping characteristics, while supporting months-long deployment and serial production.
The Axe Bow design offers unprecedented seakeeping characteristics. This hull shape has been patented by Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands and the exclusive right of use has been granted to Damen Shipyards, which has been involved in the research and development phase. The licence fee and additional contribution for every ship that uses this hull shape is reinvested in Research at Delft University by the Collaborative Axe Bow fund founded by Damen and Delft University of Technology.
“The Liberty class reflects our focus on building autonomous ships that are designed from the start for long-duration operations and repeat production,” said Rylan Hamilton, CEO of Blue Water Autonomy. “By adapting a proven hull and re-engineering it for unmanned operations, we’re delivering a vessel that can operate for extended periods without crew while being produced at a pace the Navy urgently needs. This is a modern take on an old idea: building capable ships quickly and at scale.”
To achieve autonomy, Blue Water redesigned the vessel from the inside out, beginning with the engine room and extending to the ship’s mechanical and electrical systems through autonomous configuration of fault-tolerant propulsion systems. Those design choices enable automated control and fault management with limited human intervention on months-long deployments, resulting in a design with an operational range of approximately 10,000 nautical miles. Wrapped around the ship’s internal technology, the Axe Bow steel hull offers a rugged wave-piercing ship proven in harsh ocean environments.
Damen and Blue Water saw symbiosis between Damen’s proven hull and Blue Water’s focus on high endurance autonomous vessel technology. The Stan Patrol 6009 hull design has been deployed across multiple commercial and government programmes and provides a well-established foundation for new applications. Damen supports the programme through its Damen Technical Cooperation (DTC) licensing model, which it has applied with partners and shipyards around the world, including in the United States.
“The Axe Bow hull was designed for demanding operational requirements, from speed and range to seakeeping,” said Mark Honders, Design and Licence Manager at Damen. “Seeing the Stan Patrol 6009 adapted for autonomous operation underscores the flexibility of the design and demonstrates how proven commercial designs can serve new and emerging maritime missions.”
The launch of Liberty comes as U.S. Navy and Pentagon leadership push defence contractors to privately develop key military technology.
Blue Water’s ships will be constructed at Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana, whose five yards and 1,100-strong workforce produce 30+ ships per year. Conrad uses an advanced shipbuilding approach, including highly automated panel line and welding techniques, that allow parallel builds and scalable throughput.
“Conrad has a long history of building complex vessels for both commercial and government customers,” said Cecil Hernandez, President and CEO of Conrad Shipyard. “We have the infrastructure, workforce, and production readiness to begin construction and support serial builds, helping translate advanced vessel designs into operational capacity.”
Liberty class is a reference to the Liberty Ships of World War II, which were produced rapidly and at scale to meet urgent national needs. Following delivery of the first ship, Blue Water plans to move into serial production, targeting ten to twenty vessels per year. Construction of the Liberty class will take place at Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana – which has produced Damen-designed hulls before – leveraging existing shipyard capacity and workforce to support efficient production, and drawing on its experience delivering complex commercial and government vessels.
