Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda form QinetiQ’s uncrewed surface-target offering for naval training and weapon-system evaluation. The family includes complementary towed targets and a control architecture advertised for up to 40 simultaneous targets. QinetiQ reports deploying ten Hammerheads at Cobra Gold 2026, with land- and ship-based control and field-team deployment and recovery.
Technical detail
Core features
Hammerhead MkII, Barracuda and complementary towed naval targets
Multi-target control architecture advertised for up to 40 targets
Company-reported ten-Hammerhead Cobra Gold exercise deployment in March 2026
Uncrewed surface vehicles
Naval targets
Swarm training
Threat representation
Live-fire training
Use & integration
Recorded applications
Naval training and threat representation
Naval weapon-system evaluation
Multi-target exercise rehearsal
These describe the reviewed application scope, not confirmed deployments, released requirements or procurement eligibility.
Evidence of maturity
QinetiQ’s March 10, 2026 Cobra Gold account documents exercise use of ten Hammerheads. It does not independently verify every advertised family-level performance figure or a Barracuda acceptance milestone.
Commercial availability
Offered as configurable target systems with field-service arrangements; platform, payload and exercise requirements determine the delivered package.
Integration and verification
Readiness
A technology readiness level is not established by the reviewed public sources.
Hammerhead and Barracuda Naval Target Systems may help teams working on Defending against air and missile attacks by contributing to detection and situational awareness, aerospace operations, and targeting and precision effects.
Hammerhead and Barracuda Naval Target Systems may help teams working on Sovereign defence capability areas by contributing to detection and situational awareness, autonomous and uncrewed systems, and aerospace operations.
This is a reviewed public-source assessment. It is not procurement eligibility, endorsement, customer interest, or classified demand.
Original sources 5 linked records
These records support this capability and its published Mission area and Defence need connections. A source count is not a count of independent confirmations.
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technical tags
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technology readiness level
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · defence applications
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · add child
QinetiQ's official surface-target portfolio describes Hammerhead, Barracuda, Sprite II and tow targets for naval live-fire readiness, fast-attack-craft and piracy scenarios, including simultaneous control of up to 40 targets.
Supports: Capability · defence applications
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · defence applications
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · core features
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · commercial availability
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · summary
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technical tags
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technical tags
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technical tags
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · core features
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · capability type
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technicaldomainslugs
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · name
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Capability · technical tags
QinetiQ offers Hammerhead MkII and Barracuda uncrewed surface targets and complementary towed targets for naval training and system evaluation; the family architecture supports control of up to 40 targets simultaneously.
Supports: Defence need · Defending against air and missile attacks
QinetiQ's official surface-target portfolio describes Hammerhead, Barracuda, Sprite II and tow targets for naval live-fire readiness, fast-attack-craft and piracy scenarios, including simultaneous control of up to 40 targets.
Supports: Defence need · Sovereign defence capability areas
QinetiQ's official surface-target portfolio describes Hammerhead, Barracuda, Sprite II and tow targets for naval live-fire readiness, fast-attack-craft and piracy scenarios, including simultaneous control of up to 40 targets.
QinetiQ reports that ten Hammerhead surface targets operated during Cobra Gold 2026, controlled from land and a ship and supported by its field team for deployment and recovery. This establishes company-reported exercise use, not customer-certified performance.
Supports: Capability · core features
QinetiQ reports that ten Hammerhead surface targets operated during Cobra Gold 2026, controlled from land and a ship and supported by its field team for deployment and recovery. This establishes company-reported exercise use, not customer-certified performance.
The Hammerhead MkII product page supports line-of-sight and over-the-horizon control, 35-knot operation in Sea State 3, payload customization and swarm threat representation.
Supports: Defence need · Defending against air and missile attacks
The Hammerhead MkII product page supports line-of-sight and over-the-horizon control, 35-knot operation in Sea State 3, payload customization and swarm threat representation.
Supports: Defence need · Sovereign defence capability areas
Reviewer synthesis of the public end state: Canada can build, sustain or control priority aerospace, ammunition, digital, in-service support, sensor, space, specialized manufacturing, training and uncrewed capabilities through domestic strength, trusted partnerships and sovereign access.
Public sources cited · Facts and assessments kept separate · Human review
QinetiQ reports that ten Hammerhead surface targets operated during Cobra Gold 2026, controlled from land and a ship and supported by its field team for deployment and recovery. This establishes company-reported exercise use, not customer-certified performance.
Supports: Capability · add child
QinetiQ's March 2026 report identifies the Canadian Target Systems team and documents deployment and remote control of ten Hammerhead targets in three multinational exercise scenarios.
Supports: Defence need · Defending against air and missile attacks
QinetiQ's March 2026 report identifies the Canadian Target Systems team and documents deployment and remote control of ten Hammerhead targets in three multinational exercise scenarios.
Supports: Defence need · Sovereign defence capability areas
QinetiQ's March 2026 report identifies the Canadian Target Systems team and documents deployment and remote control of ten Hammerhead targets in three multinational exercise scenarios.
Supports:
The Hammerhead MkII product page supports line-of-sight and over-the-horizon control, 35-knot operation in Sea State 3, payload customization and swarm threat representation.
Supports: Defence need · Sovereign defence capability areas
Canada needs secure strategic autonomy and reliable access to capabilities that are critical to defending its sovereignty and meeting allied commitments, while reducing exposure to foreign supply-chain and intellectual-property dependencies.
