Hanwha Defense USA's H38 MUSV drone warship could launch up to 32 ballistic missiles at 500 km.

Hanwha Defense USA and Magnet Defense displayed a scale model of the 38-meter H38 medium unmanned surface vessel alongside containerized Chunmoo and K-VLS missile systems at AUSA 2026 in Washington, D.C. The uncrewed catamaran platform is engineered to integrate modular containerized launchers to support multi-mission naval operations, targeting the United States Navy's evolving unmanned surface vehicle acquisition priorities. This partnership combines Magnet Defense's DriveAI autonomy architecture with Hanwha's scalable weapons integration framework to expand distributed maritime strike capabilities.

The H38 MUSV is a 38-meter unmanned catamaran designed to carry up to 75 metric tons of interchangeable payloads, including containerized rocket launchers and VLS cells capable of delivering guided rockets, ballistic missiles, anti-ship missiles, anti-submarine weapons, and air defense interceptors. (Picture source: Army Recognition)

On October 12, 2026, Hanwha Defense USA displayed a scale model of its 38-meter H38 medium unmanned surface vessel (MUSV), jointly developed with Magnet Defense, at AUSA 2026 in Washington, D.C., alongside four containerized Chunmoo and K-VLS missile launchers. Its deck can accommodate up to four 6.1-meter containers or two 12.2-meter containers, allowing configurations carrying as many as 48 guided rockets, 32 tactical ballistic missiles, or 16 vertical-launch cells for land-attack, anti-ship, anti-submarine, and air defense. The catamaran-based vessel is designed to carry 75 metric tons of payload, reach 28 knots, and travel 5,800 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 15 knots. Hanwha has begun steel cutting for the first production-oriented M48 and plans H38 payload testing in January 2027, following the companies' partnership agreement in April 2026. The program targets the U.S. Navy's MUSV Marketplace, established in March 2026 to accelerate the acquisition of production-ready unmanned vessels, although Hanwha and Magnet have not yet secured a Navy production contract.

The H38, also referred to as M38, retains the twin-hull catamaran configuration of Magnet Defense's M48, but shortens it by 10 meters (20.8%) and eliminates crew accommodation to free space for mission equipment. Its lightship displacement is 110 metric tons, with a 75-metric-ton payload allowance equivalent to 68% of lightship mass, producing a nominal combined mass of 185 metric tons before other variable loads. At 15 knots, its 5,800-nautical-mile range equals 10,741 km or 16.1 days of continuous travel, compared with 17,000 nautical miles and 47.2 days for the M48 at the same speed. The H38 is designed for Sea State 7, corresponding to significant wave heights of 6 to 9 meters, although navigation in these conditions does not establish permission to launch missiles. Hanwha estimates the H38 hull at $15 million, half the $30 million associated with the M48 demonstrator, excluding weapons and combat systems.

Related topic: Hanwha's new Striker-S MUSV integrates Chunmoo rocket launcher for uncrewed naval strike

The H38's deck supports four 20-foot containers, two 40-foot containers, or a combination of two short and one long container. Four Chunmoo modules would accommodate eight rocket pods, while four K-VLS Compact modules would provide 16 cells; two K-VLS I containers provide eight, and two K-VLS II modules provide four larger cells. One K-VLS I module combined with two Compact modules would therefore carry 12 cells divided between two launcher types. These arrangements would permit the same MUSV to carry guided rockets for coastal strikes during one deployment and surface-to-air missiles or anti-submarine weapons during another, without replacing permanently installed launch structures. Missile exhaust, electrical demand, deck reinforcement, and stability must also be considered before all the configurations can be qualified for naval firing.

Already seen on the Striker-S MUSV exposed during Eurosatory 2026, the containerized K239 Chunmoo uses two interchangeable ammunition pods per 6.1-meter container. Each pod can carry six CGR-080 guided rockets with an 80 km range, four CTM-MR ballistic missiles reaching 160 km, four CTM-160 anti-ship ballistic missiles, one CTM-290 reaching 290 km, or one proposed CTM-X reaching 500 km. Four modules therefore carry 48 CGR-080 rockets, 32 CTM-MR or CTM-160 missiles, or eight CTM-290 or CTM-X missiles, assuming a uniform ammunition configuration. The CTM-X would offer 6.25 times the maximum range of the CGR-080, but only one-sixth its ammunition capacity. Naval use also requires compensation for roll and pitch, while anti-ship engagements need updated target coordinates and missile-launch qualification. To date, Hanwha has not yet completed an H38 shipboard Chunmoo firing.

Hanwha's three containerized Korean Vertical Launch System (K-VLS) variants differ in missile size, capacity, and mission. The 20-foot K-VLS Compact contains four cells for smaller interceptors such as the K-SAAM Haegung surface-to-air missile, while the 40-foot K-VLS I carries four cells for K-SAAM, K-ASROC Red Shark rocket-assisted torpedoes, or SSM-700K Haeseong anti-ship cruise missiles. The equally long K-VLS II contains two larger cells for L-SAM-class interceptors and larger cruise or ballistic missiles. Four Compact modules would provide 16 cells, compared with eight K-VLS I cells or four K-VLS II cells using the full deck allocation, creating a trade-off between missile size and launcher quantity. The K-ASROC would allow attacks on submarine contacts supplied by external sensors, while air defense and long-range anti-ship engagements would require compatible radar, fire control, and targeting links.

Magnet Defense's 48-meter M48 catamaran already completed a 32,000-nautical-mile round trip from Miami to American Samoa in 2024, passing through the Panama Canal and encountering Sea State 9 conditions, involving significant wave heights exceeding 14 meters. By late 2025, its broader research-vessel testing program had accumulated more than 390 days at sea. Magnet's DriveAI system continuously processes vessel condition, sensor inputs, surrounding maritime traffic, and operator-defined navigation constraints, using AIS data and collision-avoidance functions to comply with the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea. It can adjust routes and vessel movements without requiring a remote operator to issue individual steering commands, while retaining the ability to transfer control to personnel when necessary, with additional work on multilingual VHF communications and navigation under degraded GPS conditions.

Hanwha Defense USA and Magnet Defense formalized their partnership on April 20, 2026, at Sea-Air-Space in National Harbor, Maryland. Hanwha, led by CEO Michael Coulter, is responsible for most of the construction and weapons integration, with Senior Vice President Kevin Schoonover overseeing missile activities. Magnet, led by CEO Marc Bell and Chief Technology Officer George Wallner, contributes the catamaran hull design and DriveAI autonomy system, with the partnership also covering automated shipbuilding and AI-assisted manufacturing. Magnet acquired Louisiana-based Metal Shark in January 2026, adding 125,000 square feet, or 11,613 square meters, of shipbuilding manufacturing space. The companies are also pursuing robotic manufacturing and augmented-reality worker training. Their schedule includes H38 payload trials in January 2027 and delivery of the first production-oriented M48 during the second quarter of 2027.

The H38 and M48 are being developed as the U.S. Navy reorganizes its medium unmanned surface vessel (MUSV) acquisition process, following its March 26, 2026, decision to replace the Modular Attack Surface Craft approach with a recurring MUSV Marketplace. The first round required submissions by April 17 and selected seven companies for testing in June, without Hanwha or Magnet. The broader MUSV effort has approximately $2.1 billion in funding from legislation enacted in July 2025, but no production allocation has been announced for this partnership. At the estimated $15 million H38 hull price, ten vessels would cost $150 million and twenty would cost $300 million before launchers, missiles, sensors, communications, and sustainment. Twenty H38s could theoretically accommodate 960 CGR-080 rockets or 320 Compact K-VLS cells, although these are alternative loads rather than verified operational inventories. Procurement will depend on demonstrating complete combat-system integration, missile firings, autonomous operations, and an acceptable fully equipped vessel cost.

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Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, South Korea, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.