Panama is using Saronic’s Corsair uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) to conduct maritime security patrols in the wake of a demonstration during a recent exercise.
As per the U.S. Department of War, the country’s enthusiasm for the capabilities of the drone boats was cemented by the recent Exercise Panamax 2026, which ran between August 3 and 13 and focused on safeguarding the Panama Canal.
The serials brought together over 2,000 military and security professionals from 19 nations and marked the first PANAMAX live field-training exercises since 2012, combining traditional command post simulations with practical operations.
As part of the exercise the U.S. Navy deployed some of its Corsair USVs; Panamanian security leaders were so impressed with the performance of the drones, representatives of its Ministry of Security negotiated to keep the assets in place afterwards.
As per a recent U.S. Department of War press statement: “In the weeks following Panamax, the U.S. embassy and U.S. Southern Command coordinated with Panama’s Ministry of Security to retain the Corsairs for a maritime security mission conducted in partnership with Panama’s National Aeronaval Service.
“The effort supports Panama’s ongoing work to protect its territorial waters, counter drug trafficking and other illicit activity, and strengthen security along critical maritime routes.”
U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) Colonel Ian Fletcher, commander of Southcom’s newly established Autonomous Warfare Command, explained: “Their onboard radar and electro-optical sensors provide many of the enhanced detection capabilities associated with a manned patrol craft, allowing operators to maintain awareness over a larger area.”
He added: “The platforms can operate alongside manned patrol craft and provide additional information to crews at sea. That gives partner forces greater flexibility, improves efficiency, and expands the area they can monitor without requiring additional personnel aboard each vessel.”
The new role is another coup for the defence firm, which was recently won a U.S. Navy order for ten of its 180-foot Marauder drone boats at an estimated cost of $40 million each under the Medium Unmanned Surface Vessel (MUSV) Marketplace programme.
It also recently started work on its $3 billion next-generation Port Alpha Shipyard in Brownsville, Texas; as well as uncrewed systems, it will also build Landing Craft Utility (LCU) vessels for the USMC there.
Earlier this summer its Corsairs were used as one-way effector (OWE) kamikaze attack drones in strikes against Iran; another was also used to rescue two downed AH-64 Apache pilots off the coast of Oman, the first time a USV had been used in such a way in combat conditions.
- You can read more about the rescue in an exclusive interview with Lead of U.K. and Europe at Saronic Technologies Paul Hollingshead in our free-to-download editorial feature: Rescue Under Fire: MSAR Operations In Conflict Conditions
- You can read more details about the Panama deploymenton the U.S. DoW website and more about the company on the Saronic website
