What the maritime drone used by the US to rescue crew members of a downed helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz looks like

Marine drone used by US to rescue crew of downed helicopter in Strait of Hormuz
Saronic via BBC
A maritime drone was used to save two crew members from a US Army helicopter that crashed off the coast of Oman earlier this week, according to the US military - becoming the first publicly known case of an unmanned vessel used in a rescue mission.
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US President Donald Trump said the Apache helicopter was shot down by Iran near the Strait of Hormuz - which has been largely blocked from navigation since the start of the war with Iran.
The two soldiers "were rescued safely within approximately two hours and are in stable condition," US Central Command (Centcom) said.
BBC Verify looked at what we know about the maritime drone and the rescue mission.
US attacks Iran in retaliation for the downing of an American helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz
What is the US maritime drone?
Centcom confirmed that a "Corsair" drone, which is manufactured by a Texas-based maritime drone company, was used in the rescue.
It measures 7.3 meters long, is capable of carrying 450 kg and can travel at more than 64 kilometers per hour, according to with the company's website.
"The Corsair is about the size of a fishing boat with a flat deck and is designed to carry cargo, so it can probably seat three to four people," says Bryan Clark, a maritime drone expert at the Hudson Institute think tank.
Clark adds that it has a 360-degree camera, a radar system for long-range navigation, and a radio frequency sensor to pick up communications for intelligence gathering. years - the US Navy has about 50 of them," according to Stacie Pettyjohn, a US military expert at the Center for a New American Security think tank.
"They are typically used for mine detection or surveillance, but the Navy is still testing the fleet in the straits to see what it can do." manned, created in 2021. The US began using it in the Middle East in March.
It is part of the Pentagon's plan to expand the use of drones. The Navy awarded the Corsair maker a $392 million production contract for its autonomous vessels last year.
What was the rescue mission like?
Although the maritime drone can be operated autonomously, both experts BBC Verify spoke to said it was likely operated manually in the rescue.
"In this mission, it was likely controlled remotely by a person with a joystick to ensure it arrived at the crew's exact location," Clark said.
"It would have been directed into position where they were and they simply climbed aboard, as they would when getting on a boat at sea."
"The unmanned drone is used instead of sending a ship or a helicopter where people could have been shot at," says Pettyjohn.
"While rescue is not the primary mission of this type of vessel, it is clearly suited for a 'dirty' and dangerous mission like this."
The US military was picked up around 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, on time. location, and taken to another location in the water, according to Centcom spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins. "They were then lifted up by a helicopter," he added.
Who else uses maritime drones in the world?
Sea drones have been increasingly used in the war between Ukraine and Russia, as BBC Verify has previously reported.
Ukraine has loaded them with explosives to launch attacks on Russian military ships, but there is no news about their use in rescue missions.
"Most of the vessels used by Ukraine are smaller, more similar in size to a jet ski, and not can carry a person," says Clark.
The maritime drones used by Ukraine
BBC
Yemen's Houthi rebels have also operated so-called kamikaze drone boats, and Iran has used drone boats during the current conflict to attack vessels trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
"The Houthis and the Iranians have had maritime drones in the past, but the Ukrainians have really taken it to another level and shown what other countries could do," he says Pettyjohn.
"US maritime drones largely grew out of the Ukraine war and what they innovated."
We used artificial intelligence to translate this report, originally written in English. The text was reviewed by a BBC journalist before publication. Find out more here about how the BBC is using artificial intelligence (link to English text).

Source: G1