It's designed to be completely autonomous, as that will save the agency a bunch of money. Based on the details DARPA previously shared, the US Navy will deploy sonar buoys to give the drone an idea on where to go. After that, the ship will take over, using long/short-range sonar to detect stealthy diesel electric submarines and follow them around for months. Besides hounding foreign submarines, it can also be used for reconnaissance, to deliver supplies to other ships and counter undersea mines.

This could be a great addition to the fleet to counter the stealthy diesel electric subs that many nations are deploying.

The primary objective of the ACTUV will be to track enemy submarines in shallow waters. The ship is designed to operate autonomously for 60 to 90 days straight, eliminating the hundreds of crew members it typically takes to operate these type of vehicles. The ACTUV also reduces the chance for human error while searching for potential threats.
[Post edited by MEHOKIE at 02/14/2016 6:43PM]