For the first time in United States military history, uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), or one-way boat drones, have been used as a strike weapon in combat against Iran.
The vessels can be launched while loaded with more than 400 kilograms of explosives and sent on their final mission to destroy enemy targets without endangering the lives of the attacker.
The military development comes as the US and Iran traded renewed strikes to control the Strait of Hormuz.
The US has today announced that its naval blockade of Iran has come into effect, preventing maritime traffic from leaving or entering Iranian ports.
The US made its first one-way drone boat strike on July 12 using Saronic Corsair USVs against “dozens” of Iranian targets, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM).
“Yesterday, using multiple one-way attack surface drones, CENTCOM forces successfully struck a submarine and ship maintenance facility in Iran,” the command stated on X Monday morning.
“Three Corsair unmanned surface vessels hit the port at Bandar Abbas Naval Base, marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations. Last night’s strikes degraded Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial shipping.”
In response, Iran struck two UAE tankers, killing one crew member and injuring eight others.
Iranian media is reporting that the Iranian army launched drone strikes at US positions at Azraq base in Jordan.
The Iranian army also said it would continue drone operations against US bases in the region until its “final victory”.
What is the Corsair?
The US says three Corsair drone boats hit the port at Bandar Abbas naval base. (Supplied: Sarnoic)
The Corsair drone boat can travel at speeds of up to 35 knots, or about 65km/h.
Saronic described the vessel as “autonomous” and capable of carrying up to 1,000 lbs (453 kilograms) and travelling up to 1,000 nautical miles.
It has a speedboat-like design, unveiled in 2024.
In a statement released on X, Saronic confirmed its Corsairs were used in the strike.
“The US military confirmed multiple military-variant Saronic Corsairs, our 24ft USV, were used in strikes to degrade Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial shipping — marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations,” the company said.
US catching up on drone use
Drone boats have been increasingly used in recent conflicts in various roles.
The vessels are used as a key defence for Ukraine, running the Black Sea Fleet out of Crimea.
The US military used them last month to rescue two crew members of a helicopter that crashed in the Gulf after Iran downed it.
That was the first known instance of a drone boat being used to recover personnel.
Corsair drones in unspecified waters, shown in a press photo from Saronic. (Supplied: Saronic)
Michael Shoebridge, founder and director of defence think tank Strategic Analysis Australia, said these drone boats were slightly different from those used in the rescue mission.
“What they’ve done this time is put warheads on them so that when they get to a port facility or a vessel, they can blow up and destroy the target,”
he said.
Mr Shoebridge said the US-designed drones looked like “really fast remote-controlled speedboats”.
“They’re called one-way attack drones or one-way Kamikaze drones because they don’t come home. So they’re filled with a warhead, and they explode when they get to their target,” he said.
The US has been “behind the curve” on its use of drone boats in warfare, but Mr Shoebridge said these attacks had shown they were catching up.
But he said if the US wanted to defeat Iran and take full control of the strait, it would need to use a combination of its traditional high-end aircraft, missiles and warships with these drones.
“The Iranians will certainly be using drones in the air, probably on the sea, as well as small speedboats and other things to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,” Mr Shoebridge said.
He said the US had learned from what the Ukrainians had been doing, using similar uncrewed surface vessels to attack Russian warships.
“The Americans have seen that, and they’ve now demonstrated that they have at least a limited capability to do similar things,” he said.
‘Speedboats with explosives’
Mr Shoebridge said what we could see in the future in this conflict was “a duel of unmanned systems” between Iran and the US.
“These low-cost unmanned systems, essentially a speedboat with explosives strapped to it, can be very effective,” he said.
The world of drone warfare was all about diversity, he said.
Ukrainians have used these types of vessels effectively in the war with Russia, and Iran has used similar types of vessels in combat before.
The Houthi Yemenis, who Iran backs, have also used them when an explosive Houthi USV struck a Saudi frigate in 2017.
Mr Shoebridge said the next step for the US was to show it had a range of different drones.
“They’re so much cheaper than the advanced missiles and things like warships,”
he said.
“The Americans are showing that the cost also matters to them, and as does their lack of their ability to build enough missiles.”
