Iran Claims Strike on US Saildrone Drone Near Hormuz

Military Sentinel, Manama – Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy says it struck a US-operated Saildrone Explorer unmanned surface vessel on September 10 near the Strait of Hormuz, an unconfirmed claim that, if verified, would mark the second US drone loss Tehran has asserted in the waterway within a week.

What Iran Says Happened

The IRGC claim, first reported by Iran-aligned outlet IranPress, identifies the vessel as a Saildrone Explorer bearing hull number 5838 and states it was “thwarted” during what Tehran described as an “aggressive” surveillance mission. Iranian media also assert the drone had been operating out of Khasab, Oman, following earlier strikes on US facilities in Bahrain a redeployment claim that, as no US source has confirmed it.

Washington had not issued a public response to the specific Saildrone claim as of this writing. That silence is notable given precedent: CENTCOM publicly and explicitly rejected an earlier, less specific IRGC claim on September 6 of striking a US unmanned vessel, calling it “a total lie.” The September 10 claim is more detailed naming a platform type and hull number but does not establish a clear time of the alleged strike, and independent confirmation is still lacking. That the incident occurred in some form, based on the specificity of the claim and the pattern of recent drone losses in the strait;  on Iran’s account of redeployment from Bahrain to Oman.

The Platform: Saildrone Explorer

The Saildrone Explorer is a wind-propelled, uncrewed surface vessel built for long-endurance maritime surveillance rather than combat. According to manufacturer specifications and prior US Navy statements:

• Length: approximately 7 meters
• Wing height: roughly 5 meters (rigid sail for propulsion)
• Draft: about 2 meters
• Speed: 1–3 knots, wind-driven; solar power runs onboard electronics
• Endurance: over 12 months at sea without resupply
• Payload: AIS transponder, camera systems, satellite communications, radar, and meteorological/oceanographic sensors

The US Navy’s Task Force 59, based in Manama, Bahrain, began operating Saildrone Explorers in the Arabian Gulf in January 2022 as part of an effort to integrate unmanned systems into US Fifth Fleet operations. The unit held a change-of-command ceremony as recently as August 2025, indicating the program remains active.

A Pattern of Contested Drone Losses

The claimed Saildrone strike follows a separate, US-acknowledged incident on September 8, when Iran said it recovered an Anduril Dive-LD autonomous underwater vehicle near the Strait of Hormuz entrance. In that case, a CENTCOM spokesperson confirmed the loss, attributing it to a malfunction rather than hostile action and stating the vehicle carried no classified radar or sonar equipment. Anduril lists the Dive-LD as a 5.8-meter platform rated for dives to 6,000 meters and missions of up to ten days.

Taken together, the two episodes one confirmed by Washington as a technical failure, one claimed by Tehran as a strike and still unconfirmed illustrate how US unmanned surface and underwater systems in the Gulf are becoming contested targets in their own right, distinct from the crewed-vessel confrontations that have dominated the broader US-Iran naval standoff since strikes escalated in early September.

Strategic Implications

The Saildrone’s slow speed and lack of self-defense capability make it a persistent sensor rather than a survivable asset against direct engagement a trade-off the US Navy has accepted for the endurance and low-cost distributed coverage the platform provides across a strategically vital chokepoint. If Iran can reliably locate and disable these platforms, it would blunt a low-risk US surveillance tool without escalating to attacks on crewed ships or personnel, a calculus likely to keep unmanned systems as recurring flashpoints in the strait’s ongoing standoff.