America’s Latest Weapon Against Iran: Sea Drones
In a U.S. combat first, three unmanned speedboats attacked an Iranian submarine and ship facility
- Three American drone boats attacked an Iranian submarine and ship facility on Sunday, marking the first combat use of sea drones by U.S. forces.
- The U.S. Central Command said the drone boat strikes targeted a port at the Bandar Abbas Naval Base as part of a broader wave of strikes.
- The deployed Saronic Corsair vessels are 24-foot-long speedboats that cost less than $1 million each and can carry up to 1,000 pounds.
When three American drone boats sneaked into an Iranian port and blew up a submarine and ship maintenance facility on Sunday, it marked a significant public milestone for the U.S.’s growing fleet of unmanned surface vessels.
The drone boat attacks, which were part of a broader wave of strikes, hit the port at Bandar Abbas Naval Base, according to a statement and videos released by U.S. Central Command. It was the first time American forces had employed sea drones in combat operations, the command said.
The assault offers a preview of what is to come as fighting resumes following the collapse of peace negotiations with Tehran, a senior U.S. official said. Iran and the U.S. have stepped up attacks in recent days as the two nations battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz.
The sea drone attacks underscore the growing importance of unmanned technologies that are being combat-tested by the U.S. for the first time in the Middle East. In addition to using drones to fight Iran, the Pentagon is seeking to buy unmanned systems in large numbers to deter adversaries like China and capitalize on lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.
The vessels deployed in Sunday’s attack, known as Saronic Corsairs, are 24-foot-long speedboats that can travel more than 1,000 miles and carry payloads of up to 1,000 pounds. They arrived in the Middle East in late March after the war started, according to a U.S. official.
The boats are made in Texas by Saronic, an American company co-founded by a former Navy SEAL. They cost less than $1 million apiece and are designed to carry out a range of missions, according to a company spokesperson. A Corsair was used in June to rescue the crew of an Apache helicopter that was downed off the coast of Oman.
“We are proud that our technology supported this mission and helped degrade threats to commercial shipping,” Saronic said in a statement.
The drone boat operation marks a notable milestone for Centcom chief Adm. Brad Cooper, who in 2021 started an artificial intelligence and drone task force in the Middle East. As commander of U.S. forces in the region, Cooper has vowed to supercharge innovation and deliver cutting-edge technologies to warfighters.
“The U.S. military’s first combat use of one-way attack sea drones is another example of how wartime drives rapid adoption of new capabilities,” said Cynthia Cook, an expert on naval drones at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Sea drone attacks have largely been pioneered by Ukraine, which has sought to revolutionize naval warfare in the same way unmanned aerial vehicles have transformed the skies.
Ukraine has used unmanned vessels since at least 2022, when it hit a Russian naval base. The following summer, it deployed “Sea Baby” maritime drones in a high-profile attack on a bridge connecting Russia with occupied Crimea.
More recently, it has used sea drones to take out Russian warships and commercial vessels. Ukraine says it has hit dozens of oil tankers and ferries in recent weeks.
Ukrainian forces have also mounted missiles and rockets on maritime drones to down aircraft and hit land targets. Last year, the country’s security service said it had “effectively disabled” a Russian submarine with an underwater drone—a reputed first in warfare. On Monday, a Ukrainian unit released footage that appeared to show an autonomous craft landing on a beach and then launching a land drone that shot at a Russian position.
Unmanned vessels have various limitations. Their small size can affect their range. They are susceptible to having their communications cut off by electronic warfare. And communicating with underwater drones is particularly hard.
But navies are already taking sea drones into account. Russia has moved ships further away from the combat zone to escape the threat. Meanwhile, the U.K. recently said it would build vessels designed to act as mother ships to drones instead of replacing its fleet of destroyers.
The U.S. has been using and experimenting with sea drones in waters around the world to carry out a range of missions, including conducting maritime surveillance, clearing sea mines and simulating attack swarms.
A range of established defense companies–including BAE Systems and Naval Group—and a host of startups—from Anduril to Kraken Technology—are rushing out new unmanned vessels with ever-greater ranges and explosive power.
Saronic was established in 2022 by Dino Mavrookas—who spent more than a decade in the Navy’s elite SEAL commando unit—along with co-founders Rob Lehman, Vibhav Altekar and Doug Lambert.
Saronic set out to develop autonomous vessels with the goal of growing U.S. shipbuilding capacity and “redefine maritime superiority” using autonomy, Mavrookas said in a podcast interview last year.
Saronic has risen fast in the defense-tech industry and is backed by prominent investors, including Joe Lonsdale’s 8VC, Caffeinated Capital and Andreessen Horowitz. Earlier this year, the company said it had raised $1.75 billion at a $9.25 billion valuation.