Britain and the United States have successfully test-fired a torpedo from an uncrewed undersea vessel for the first time, the UK government announced Monday. The live test took place in UK waters last week, with the weapon launched from a 12-metre British-built underwater drone called Excalibur — part of a joint effort under the AUKUS trilateral security pact (a defence alliance between Australia, the UK, and the US focused on advanced military technology). Analysts say the milestone demonstrates that autonomous underwater systems can deliver lethal payloads, not just perform surveillance, marking a significant shift in submarine warfare capabilities for NATO allies.