U.S. drone boat builder Saronic has issued a statement after it was revealed its Corsair uncrewed surface vessel (USV) had been responsible for the rescue of two air crew in waters off Oman.
A statement issued by Saronic on social media stated: “The U.S. military confirmed that a Saronic Corsair was used in the first-of-its-kind rescue operation following the downing of a U.S. Army helicopter.
“At Saronic, we build autonomous vessels to extend capability into the most demanding and dangerous environments. Knowing Corsair could play a role in helping bring our service members home safely is exactly why we build.
“Proud to support the men and women of the U.S. armed forces — and grateful to the team that made it possible.”
Two U.S. Army pilots patrolling regional waters near Oman required rescue after their AH-64 Apache was downed; it’s thought the attack helicopter was brought down by a drone. U.S. President Donald Trump revealed on social media that Iranian forces had downed the drone.
As per a U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) statement shortly after the incident: “At 7:33 p.m. ET on June 8, two crew members from a U.S. Army AH-64 Apache were rescued by American forces after their helicopter went down near the coast of Oman while patrolling regional waters.
“The soldiers were safely rescued within approximately two hours and are in stable condition. The cause of the incident is under investigation.
“Rescue efforts were led by U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and the 82nd Airborne Division, with support from U.S. Air Force and Navy units, including U.S. 5th Fleet’s Task Force 59.”
“The surface drone that assisted in last night’s rescue of the Apache crew off the coast of Oman was a U.S. Navy Corsair unmanned surface vessel operated by U.S. 5th Fleet’s Task Force 59,” said CENTCOM spokesman U.S. Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins later, speaking to another media outlet.
“The task force began fielding these drones in theatre in late March.”
Navy Leaders reported in December that Saronic had won a $322 million contract from the U.S. Navy to provide it with an unspecified number of its Corsair uncrewed surface vessels (USVs).
Then-Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) John Phelan announced the Other Transaction Authority (OTA) deal; OTAs are flexible procurement instruments used by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to bypass Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and speed up acquisition.
The Corsair USV is a 24-foot modular platform capable of 35+ knots with a payload of about 1,000 lbs and an estimated range of roughly 1,000 nautical miles.
The firm says the USV is suitable for blue-water missions ranging from maritime domain awareness to kinetic and non-kinetic strike roles.
This week’s rescue is thought to be the first instance of a USV being used by the U.S. Navy in a search-and-rescue capacity.
- You can read CENTCOM’s latest updates on its X social media feed