The International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC) is working with autonomous vessels.
The eight-member, US-backed military coalition patrolling the Middle East Gulf enlisted the help of Task Force X to deploy two Saildrone Explorer vessels during a massive, two-week-long international maritime exercise.
The Saildrone Explorer vessels operate without a crew, use wind propulsion and draw on solar power to run their equipment.
“The exercise was a perfect demonstration of progress towards delivering a genuinely ‘digital ocean’ where navies increasingly employ a combination of manned and unmanned systems, on, above, and below the surface, to deliver unparalleled situational awareness and operational choice to the commander,” said UK Royal Navy Commodore Don Mackinnon.
Mackinnon heads CTF Sentinel, the IMSC's operational arm.
The group — which includes the US, UK, Albania, Estonia, Lithuania, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, which also hosts its headquarters — was created after Iran alleged mined and seized tankers in the Strait of Hormuz in 2019.
The two autonomous vessels were launched as part of the International Maritime Exercise/Cutlass Express, which involves more than 60 countries and international organisations, 9,000 personnel and 50 ships and takes place across the Middle East.
The naval forces are broken up into four geographically-based task forces, with Task Force X running unmanned and artificial intelligence systems.
During the exercises, which are set to run through 18 February, IMSC leaders observed the Saildrone Explorers' performance from a Bahrain navy vessel.
US-based manufacturer Saildrone said the units can be used in science, mapping and security missions and have to date covered 500,000 nautical miles worldwide with more than 15,000 days at sea.
