HONOLULU, Hawaii — Marking a significant advancement in autonomous naval warfare, Saildrone—the global leader in unmanned surface vehicle (USV) technology—executed two Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM) launches from a Saildrone Surveyor USV during the US Navy’s Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise. This operation, conducted off the coast of Hawaii under the sponsorship of the US Navy Fleet Experimentation Program (FLEX), represents the first-ever missile launch from a Saildrone USV.

In coordination with the USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT(CVN-71) Carrier Strike Group-9 and enabled by the Navy’s ARES (Adjunct Remote Engagement System)—a remotely operated combat system—the Saildrone Surveyor demonstrated its interoperability by acting on target data for a surrogate high-speed surface craft. 

“This successful live fire demonstration was the result of pairing one of the most tried and trusted munitions with the most operationally deployed class of USV on the planet,” said Richard Jenkins, Saildrone’s founder and CEO. “Not only does this deliver mission-ready, kinetic USV capability today, but it also de-risks and accelerates our journey of fitting more sophisticated kinetic capabilities, like the Mk70 launcher, to our larger platform, the Saildrone Spectre. Saildrone will continue to develop our platform capabilities to meet the rapidly evolving operational requirements of our customers.”

This live-fire demonstration is the culmination of six months of joint development between Saildrone and Lockheed Martin, which originated from a strategic partnership established in October 2025. The RIMPAC exercise further highlighted the Surveyor’s versatility by deploying a passive electronic warfare sensor that successfully detected, classified, and identified a surrogate threat radar system in conjunction with an MH-60 aircraft.

These integrations serve as a powerful example of the ability to rapidly combine Saildrone’s commercially proven USV technology with Lockheed Martin’s combat-ready effectors to address the evolving requirements of the US military.

“Lockheed Martin and Saildrone are leading the way to act differently and leverage the strength of all of industry for our national defense. We will continue to invest in new capabilities ahead of need to accelerate and de-risk deployment of urgently needed defense technologies,” said Paul Lemmo, Vice President and General Manager, Sensors, Effectors and Mission Systems at Lockheed Martin.

This demonstration is the first of a series of planned integrations ahead of the launch of Saildrone’s largest and most advanced USV—the Saildrone Spectre. Measuring 52 meters (170 feet) in length, the Spectre can accommodate much larger, containerized mission sets and payloads. Future capabilities for this platform include the integration of the Lockheed Martin Mk 70 launcher and various towed arrays designed to support anti-submarine warfare operations.

The Saildrone Surveyor is a multi-mission USV designed for global missions including persistent maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), deep-ocean mapping for undersea advantage, and distributed, long-endurance power projection.

From Saildrone, Aug. 20, 2026