Anduril has unveiled a ground-launched version of its low-cost, stand-off munition, the BARRACUDA-500. The move expands the weapon’s operational envelope by adding a surface-launched configuration to the existing air-launch options (both under-wing pylons and palletised launch modules).

The new variant is intended to provide an affordable, long-range precision-strike capability from land, answering a lesson from recent conflicts: the need to scale production of strike munitions that are both versatile and cheap to field in large numbers.

To enable surface launch the “new” BARRACUDA-500 uses a solid-propellant booster for the launch phase that is then jettisoned at booster burnout, after which a small jet engine carries the vehicle through the cruise phase. The booster is supplied as a tail-mounted kit and is designed to be compatible with a range of motors producible in the United States or by allied suppliers — an approach intended to avoid single-source supply-chain bottlenecks and allow rapid, high-rate production.

Anduril says the overall Barracuda configuration remains largely unchanged: more than 90% parts commonality is retained with the air-launched variant so different versions can be built on the same production lines and assembled quickly.

The surface-launched design is platform-agnostic to ease fielding on existing systems. Anduril explicitly mentions integration with fielded launchers such as HIMARS, HARPOON and—even in concept—PATRIOT, and the company is also exploring containerised launch options.

On production scale, Anduril positions itself to reach 7,000–9,000 units per year (described as “high single-digit thousands”) by the end of 2026 — part of a strategy to make high-rate production and stockpile deterrence central to the system’s value proposition.

The BARRACUDA-500 has attracted keen interest in Taipei. Reports indicate that Taiwan’s National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) is negotiating with Anduril not only over procurements but also potential local production under a co-production or technology transfer arrangement. Taipei appears particularly interested in employing the ground-launched BARRACUDA-500 as a low-cost coastal/anti-ship strike option to complement its existing inventory of U.S.-supplied HARPOONs and indigenous HSIUNG FENG missiles.

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