Anduril Barracuda: Specifications, Variants, and Lineup
The Anduril Barracuda is a family of air-breathing autonomous air vehicles built in three designations with six total variants across published ranges from more than 120 to more than 500 nautical miles.
Anduril publishes each designation in a base configuration and an armed munition configuration, while withholding unit pricing, engine models, and payload weights.
What Barracuda Is, and How the Family Splits
The Anduril Barracuda is an Autonomous Air Vehicle (AAV) family developed by Anduril. Anduril describes Barracuda on its product page as a family of air-breathing Autonomous Air Vehicles purpose-built for hyper-scale production and mass employment. Anduril groups the family into three numerical designations: Barracuda-100, Barracuda-250, and Barracuda-500.
Each designation splits into two separate variants: a base model and an "M" model. The base vehicles are designated Barracuda-100, Barracuda-250, and Barracuda-500, while the armed vehicles are designated Barracuda-100M, Barracuda-250M, and Barracuda-500M.
In Anduril's technical summary, the primary documented distinction between the base line and the M line is the entry on the payload line, where the base vehicle states "Undisclosed" and the M vehicle states "Munition".
The numerical designations do not represent the flight ranges of the airframes. Anduril's published performance tables indicate that Barracuda-100 carries a published range of more than 120 nautical miles (nm), Barracuda-250 carries a published range of more than 200 nm, and Barracuda-500 carries a published range of more than 500 nm.
Referring to these designations as 100 nm, 250 nm, or 500 nm range classes misidentifies the numbers, because Anduril's published numbers state greater operational distances in each tier.
Published Barracuda Specifications and Variant Data
Anduril publishes technical metrics across all six variants in a standardized specification panel on the official Barracuda product page. Anduril provides specific numbers for operational range and speed, but uses categorical labels rather than numerical mass values for payload capacity. The table below compiles every metric Anduril lists for the family.
Readers should note that Anduril prints the exact word "Undisclosed" in the payload row for all three base variants. That entry represents an intentional withholding of payload weight figures rather than a missing field in the documentation. For the armed configurations, Anduril lists "Munition" without publishing explosive mass, warhead composition, or guidance seeker hardware.
| Variant | Vehicle role | Published range | Published speed | Published payload |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barracuda-100 | Base air vehicle | >120 nm | ~200-500 kts | Undisclosed |
| Barracuda-100M | Munition air vehicle | >120 nm | ~200-500 kts | Munition |
| Barracuda-250 | Base air vehicle | >200 nm | ~180-500 kts | Undisclosed |
| Barracuda-250M | Munition air vehicle | >200 nm | ~180-500 kts | Munition |
| Barracuda-500 | Base air vehicle | >500 nm | ~190-500 kts | Undisclosed |
| Barracuda-500M | Munition air vehicle | >500 nm | ~190-500 kts | Munition |
Production Framing and Manufacturing Design
Anduril frames the design of the Barracuda around rapid assembly and industrial scale. Anduril highlights four distinct "Build Qualities" on its Barracuda page to explain how the airframes are built and supplied. The first quality, titled "Ten or Fewer Tools to Assemble", asserts that the design minimizes unique tooling and part count to accelerate assembly and ensure flexibility to rapidly spin up new production lines.
The second manufacturing attribute is titled "Supply Chain Resiliency Built into Design". In Anduril's published description, Barracuda leverages commercially and widely available components across six common sub-systems.
These manufacturing statements represent production claims rather than flight performance claims. An assembly requirement of ten or fewer tools describes assembly rather than flight performance. Readers evaluating defense procurement volume should check whether Anduril reports verified factory delivery counts on the Anduril Barracuda product page before assuming high production rates.
Software Architecture and Lattice Integration
The remaining build qualities published by Anduril center on hardware adaptability and software control. Under "Rapid Hardware Integration & Testing", Anduril states that Barracuda's modular open systems architecture enables rapid integration and testing with the latest advancements in commercial sub-component technology to optimize mission systems against evolving threats.
Under "Software-Defined Upgradeability", Anduril describes Barracuda as a software-defined, hardware-enabled platform. According to Anduril, this structure allows the vehicle to continuously adapt to mission needs and execute collaborative mission autonomy in operational environments.
Barracuda operates under Anduril Lattice, the software platform that tasks, connects, and controls Anduril's hardware systems. Through Lattice, these systems enable a variety of intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and strike mission profiles across echelons of command. Anduril closes its Barracuda product presentation with its marketing phrase, "Bring Mass to the Fight".
Barracuda in the Air Dominance and Strike Lineup
Anduril places Barracuda in its Air domain under a specific grouping labeled Air Dominance & Strike. That grouping contains exactly two products: Barracuda and the FQ-44A Fury autonomous aircraft. Anduril defines this entire category as advanced air superiority systems designed to deter, compel, and punish adversaries.
Anduril directly contrasts the operational purposes of these two systems in its Air Dominance overview. Anduril describes Barracuda as a family of air-breathing systems purpose-built for hyper-scale production and mass employment, while describing Fury as a high-performance, multi-mission Autonomous Air Vehicle built for the high-end fight. This distinction reflects Anduril's framing of mass employment for Barracuda versus the high-end fight for Fury.
Barracuda also differs completely in operational role from Anduril's counter-air defensive systems. Both systems also differ in kind from the Anduril Roadrunner and Anduril Steelfin interceptors. Analysts should avoid comparing Barracuda's production goals with Roadrunner's published costs, as Anduril has published no financial targets for Barracuda.
What Anduril Does Not Publish About Barracuda
Anduril omits several specification categories from its published Barracuda materials. Anduril publishes no unit price, no program cost, and no cost range for any of the six Barracuda variants. Anduril provides no baseline cost data, unlike broader industry benchmarks discussed in military drone cost analyses.
Propulsion details are similarly absent from manufacturer disclosures. Beyond describing Barracuda as an "air-breathing" airframe, Anduril does not publish any engine or propulsion details. The words "engine" and "propulsion" appear zero times on the official product page. A reader seeking engine supplier data will find no answer on Anduril's website.
Physical dimensions and operational endurance figures are also withheld. Anduril lists no overall vehicle length, wingspan, launch weight, or flight duration in hours. Furthermore, Anduril publishes no customer names, contracted delivery schedules, delivered airframe tallies, or verified in-service operational dates. When researching missing specifications, verify updates directly on the Anduril Barracuda product page rather than relying on unconfirmed industry speculation.
Barracuda Across Anduril's Five Air Domain Groupings
Anduril's Air domain navigation splits its air products into five groupings: Tactical Reconnaissance & Strike, Air Dominance & Strike, Air Defense, Rocket Motor Systems / Maneuver Dominance, and Connected Warfare. Anduril states that systems across these groupings are tasked, connected, and controlled by Lattice to enable intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and strike missions.
The Tactical Reconnaissance & Strike grouping contains exactly three air products: Anduril Bolt, Anduril Altius, and Ghost. Anduril describes Bolt as automating manual flight inputs to track or strike, Altius as an on-demand platform launched from ground, air, or sea, and Ghost as an expeditionary, quiet, and modular platform.
Barracuda sits strictly outside the tactical grouping, placed alongside Fury in Air Dominance & Strike. Those seeking broader context on competitors in this market can review Anduril alternatives and related loitering munitions systems.
Classification Boundaries and the Missile Label
Anduril publishes one label for Barracuda: "Autonomous Air Vehicle [AAV]". The words "missile" and "cruise missile" appear zero times across the official Barracuda product page, where Anduril uses only its own classification.
The presence of the "M" designation adds nuance to this classification. While the base Barracuda-100, 250, and 500 airframes carry an "Undisclosed" payload, the 100M, 250M, and 500M variants carry a "Munition" payload as the armed configurations. Anduril documents the armed variants with a munition payload while maintaining its Autonomous Air Vehicle classification across the family.
A revised classification or a new variant row would appear first in Anduril's Barracuda spec panel.
Drones and UAS FAQs
Is the Anduril Barracuda a missile?
Anduril does not classify Barracuda as a missile on its product documentation, designating it instead as an Autonomous Air Vehicle [AAV]. The words "missile" and "cruise missile" appear zero times on the official Barracuda product page. However, the Barracuda-100M, Barracuda-250M, and Barracuda-500M variants carry a payload officially listed as "Munition", identifying them as the armed configurations of the family.
How much does the Anduril Barracuda cost?
Anduril publishes no unit price, total program price, or cost range for any Barracuda variant on its product page. Anduril states that Barracuda is designed for hyper-scale production using commercial components, but it provides no published financial figures to verify the price per airframe.
What engine does the Anduril Barracuda use?
Anduril does not publish the specific engine make, model, or manufacturer for the Barracuda family. The official product page describes Barracuda only as "air-breathing", while the words "engine" and "propulsion" appear zero times in the text. Flight speeds are listed at approximately 180 to 500 knots depending on the variant, but the underlying propulsion hardware remains undisclosed.
What is the difference between Barracuda-100, Barracuda-250 and Barracuda-500?
The primary differences between Barracuda-100, Barracuda-250, and Barracuda-500 are their published ranges and speed ranges.
Barracuda-100 has a published range of more than 120 nautical miles and speeds around 200 to 500 knots; Barracuda-250 has a range of more than 200 nautical miles and speeds around 180 to 500 knots; and Barracuda-500 has a range of more than 500 nautical miles and speeds around 190 to 500 knots. The numerical designations are variant identifiers rather than exact mileage numbers.
What is the difference between Barracuda-500 and Barracuda-500M?
The difference between Barracuda-500 and Barracuda-500M is their published payload entry in Anduril's specification panel. Barracuda-500 has its payload listed as "Undisclosed", which is Anduril's published value for the base configuration. In contrast, Barracuda-500M has its payload listed as "Munition", identifying it as an armed strike configuration of the 500-series airframe.