VIDEO: Saildrone USV Fires JAGM Missiles
[video courtesy Saildrone]
Saildrone and Lockheed Martin demonstrated a new armed autonomous naval capability during RIMPAC 2026, successfully launching two Joint Air-to-Ground Missiles (JAGM) from a Saildrone Surveyor unmanned surface vessel (USV) off Hawaii.
The live-fire exercise marked the first missile launch from a Saildrone platform, moving the commercially derived USV beyond its established intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and ocean-mapping roles into kinetic operations.
Conducted under the U.S. Navy Fleet Experimentation Program (FLEX), the demonstration involved the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) Carrier Strike Group-9 and used the Navy's ARES (Adjunct Remote Engagement System), a remotely operated combat system. The Surveyor acted on targeting data associated with a surrogate high-speed surface craft.
“This successful live fire demonstration was the result of pairing one of the most tried and trusted munitions with the most operationally deployed class of USV on the planet,” said Saildrone founder and CEO Richard Jenkins.
The demonstration followed six months of development between Saildrone and Lockheed Martin under a strategic partnership established in October 2025.
During RIMPAC, the Surveyor also carried a passive electronic warfare sensor that detected, classified and identified a surrogate threat radar in coordination with an MH-60 helicopter.
The test provides a steppingstone toward substantially larger autonomous combat platforms. Saildrone plans to integrate more sophisticated weapons aboard its upcoming 52-meter (170-ft.) Saildrone Spectre, the company's largest USV.
Future Spectre mission packages are expected to include Lockheed Martin's Mk 70 containerized launcher, as well as towed-array systems supporting anti-submarine warfare.
The Surveyor is designed as a long-endurance, multi-mission USV for persistent ISR, deep-ocean mapping and distributed maritime operations.