After the air and the earth, it is now the maritime space that changes in the era of unanswered vehicles. At the center of this movement, SAILDRONE, an American company that deploys marine drones capable of staying at sea for months. Born from scientific research, they are about to become a key security and defense tool, with the recent adoption by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the USCG (USCG).
From science to security operations
Founded in California, SAILDRONE first illustrated itself in the collection of climate and oceanographic data. Its drones, propelled by wind and fueled in solar, make it possible to map the seabed, to follow cyclones and to measure the evolution of the climate. Three models today make up its fleet: theExplore (7 meters), the To travel (10 meters) and the Surveyor (22 meters), designed for various missions. All share a central characteristic: a range of several months, capable of covering thousands of kilometers without return to the quay.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hptc3yC4Hru
The devices embark radars and high power cameras and can operate in environments where the GPS is blurred. This endurance and this resilience distinguish them from traditional ships, offering a solution that is both more flexible and less expensive to maintain a presence at sea.
Multiple uses
The first deployments concerned science and the environment such as observation of climate change, monitoring of marine mammals, monitoring illegal fishing. But the versatility of the platform quickly attracted the attention of security agencies and armies and the SAILDRONE are now integrated into:
- Operation Southern Spearanti -drug control in the Gulf of Mexico.
- Task Force 59 of the US Navy, dedicated to the experimentation of autonomous systems in the Middle East.
- NATO Exercisesespecially in the Baltic Sea.
- European cooperation, with deployments made alongside the Danish Ministry of Defense.
Their role is that ofMaritime scoutsnamely to crisscross large areas, detect and report, before inhabited means take over for the prohibition or intervention.
An institutional turning point with the US Coast Guard
This summer the DHS and the USCG signed a 37 million dollars framework To equip the American coast guard. The objective is to modernize the fleet as part of the program Force Design 2028which provides for the massive integration of autonomous technologies. Coast Guard created its first office dedicated to Robotics & Autoomous Systems (RAS).
The priorities are to secure the American coasts, fight against illegal immigration and drug trafficking, protecting critical underwater infrastructures, strengthening military preparation and monitoring illegal fishing. SAILDRONE will also be used for research and rescue missions, secure navigation or operations in the polar environment.
Towards a hybrid fleet
This adoption reflects a deep transformation which transforms the future of maritime surveillance. The latter is no longer based solely on inhabited ships and marine drones make it possible to increase the coverage at a reduced cost and ensure a constant presence on areas that are too large to be continuously patrolled.
They become the “eyes” of the fleet, releasing the traditional means for the missions with high added value. The model is close to what has already happened in the air with military drones, used for recognition and support, while inhabited planes focus on action.
A geopolitical issue
Beyond the United States, the maritime autonomy race is accelerating. China invests massively in surface drones capable of performing in swarms. Israel also develops platforms for coastal surveillance and protection. Europe, more fragmented, explores cooperation via NATO.
SAILDRONE is positioned as an already operational pioneer, with a double asset, a civil anchoring in scientific research, which expands its uses and facilitates political acceptability, and progressive integration in allied military doctrines.
The sea grid by drones
With this contract, the DHS sends as a signal that ocean monitoring will rely more and more on autonomous fleets. For SAILDRONE, it is the opportunity to become an essential supplier of maritime security, at the crossroads of research, the environment and the defense.
There remains a question: as the oceans fill with drones, how will cybersecurity, hacking or diverted uses will be managed?
