Lockheed carries out missile launches directly from a drone boat - will the US Navy be next?

On August 20th, Lockheed Martin revealed that a Saildrone Surveyor-class unmanned surface vessel had successfully launched two Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM) rounds during Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2026, held in Hawaii. This marked the first time a USV had fired missiles while operating under the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group, which coordinated the exercise through the Navy's Adjunct Remote Engagement System (ARES).

The JAGM is a successor to the Hellfire missile, designed for smaller, faster aerial and naval targets.

While not the first USV to launch a missile, this demonstration is more significant as it involved a dual launcher, making the platform potentially more lethal at a lower cost compared to traditional warships. Lockheed has previously proposed arming destroyers and coastal combat ships with surface-launched JAGM launchers, but the Surveyor's limitations include a lack of self-reloading capability.

Despite these challenges, the demonstration showcased the potential of unmanned surface vessels as support platforms for larger threats, with its passive electronic warfare sensor enabling threat detection, classification, and identification.