BAE Systems Australia has successfully completed a series of advanced trials of its Autonomous Tactical Light Armour System Collaborative Combat Variant uncrewed ground vehicle in the southern state of Victoria, marking a significant milestone in the development of autonomous land systems for future military operations.

The tests, conducted in late November 2025, evaluated the ATLAS CCV’s autonomy across multiple operational modes, from teleoperation and waypoint navigation to full "sense and avoid" autonomous behaviour, with a focus on technical performance at tactical speeds and dynamic terrain.

The ATLAS CCV is an 8×8 prototype demonstrator designed to support crewed platforms by executing complex ground manoeuvres independently or in collaboration with human operators.

During the trials, the vehicle demonstrated its ability to navigate predefined waypoints and avoid obstacles without direct human control, highlighting the maturity of its autonomy software and sensor suite.

Company officials noted that the highest levels of autonomy achieved involved go-to-point navigation with integrated sense-and-avoid capabilities, a critical advancement for uncrewed systems operating in contested environments.

A key feature of the ATLAS CCV is its enhanced autonomy architecture, which allows one operator to control up to four vehicles through advanced software systems.

This ‘‘one-to-four’’ control concept builds on earlier demonstrations by BAE Systems Australia with other unmanned platforms and positions the ATLAS CCV as a scalable solution for combined manned and unmanned land operations.

The prototype represents a continuation of Australia’s growing investment in sovereign autonomous defence technology and complements work already underway to integrate unmanned systems into the Australian Defence Force’s future force structure.

BAE Systems Australia underscored that the lessons learned from the Victoria trials will inform ongoing development work, including expanded software and sensor capabilities, as customer requirements evolve.

With sufficient funding and articulated operational needs, the company has said it could transition the demonstrator into a combat-ready prototype within approximately two years.

The successful completion of these trials underscores the nation’s advancing capabilities in autonomous systems and contributes to broader global efforts to enhance battlefield effectiveness while mitigating risks to personnel.