US uses sea drones for first time in combat, strikes Iran’s Bandar Abbas naval base

United States military announced the first-ever use of unmanned surface vessels (USVs), or one-way sea drones, during strikes on Iran, targeting facilities at the Bandar Abbas naval base, as fighting between Washington and Tehran entered its fourth day.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said that three unmanned surface vessels struck Bandar Abbas Naval Base on Sunday.

“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,” CENTCOM said in a statement.

The military released video that it said showed the vessels striking a submarine undergoing maintenance at a shipyard.

Texas-based Saronic Technologies identified the vessels as its Corsair model in a social media post. The company said the 24-foot (7.3-meter) craft has a top speed of about 40 miles per hour (64 kph) and a range of more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km).

The company also said a Corsair vessel was used in June to help rescue US Army aviators after an Apache helicopter went down over the Persian Gulf following what it described as an Iranian drone attack.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said early on Tuesday it had struck the control center for U.S. unmanned boats in Bahrain, according to the semi-official Fars News Agency.

Unmanned surface vessels have emerged as an important weapon in Ukraine’s war with Russia, where Kyiv has used them to attack Russia’s Black Sea fleet. A February report by the Carnegie Mellon Policy and Law Review said Ukrainian naval drones had sunk or damaged 19 Russian vessels over the past three years.

The latest developments came as tensions escalated following the collapse of a fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

On July 11, the United States said it launched a third round of strikes in a week, with CENTCOM saying it hit 140 Iranian military targets after accusing the IRGC of attacking a container ship transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran said it responded by launching missile and drone attacks against U.S. military targets across the Gulf, while Gulf states reported intercepting incoming attacks.

On July 12, India said one of its nationals was missing following an attack by Iran on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.

Washington and Tehran also disputed the status of the strategic waterway, with U.S. President Donald Trump and CENTCOM saying it remained open, while Iranian authorities said commercial transit was not possible.

The United States later said it carried out additional strikes against Iranian military targets, while Iran reported explosions in southern parts of the country, including at a water pumping station where one person was killed.

Iran also said it launched another wave of missile and drone attacks targeting U.S. bases in the region, including facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain.

On July 13, the United States carried out a third consecutive night of strikes across Iran after Trump warned Washington would “hit them very hard.” Iranian media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas and on the islands of Kish, Qeshm and Abu Musa.

The U.S. military said it would resume a naval blockade of vessels traveling to and from Iranian ports beginning Tuesday afternoon. Trump also announced a 20% levy on cargo linked to Iranian ports.

President Trump said Monday that the U.S.’s naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz will be reinstated as Washington and Tehran fight for control of the crucial waterway after strikes were exchanged over the weekend.

“The Hormuz Strait is OPEN, and will remain OPEN, with or without Iran,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran’s ships or customers from entering or leaving.”

The United Arab Emirates said Iranian missiles struck two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, killing one crew member. Iran also launched multiple waves of missile and drone attacks toward Bahrain.

After Iran said it had launched strikes on the Gulf state, Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said air raid sirens had sounded several times and urged residents to remain calm and seek shelter.

The IRGC said it had destroyed weapons support warehouses, a satellite communications center and a U.S. forces building at Bahrain’s Juffair base.

Iran has repeatedly claimed to have destroyed facilities at U.S. military bases during the conflict, but many of those claims have not been independently verified and the US has not confirmed those attacks or the damages.