Drone hijacking in the Persian Gulf:
According to the US Navy, a support ship of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards tries to tow an autonomous US drone boat in this video – with the aim of bringing the robotic ship to an Iranian port.
But the American coastal patrol ship USS Thunderbolt and a Seahawk military helicopter intervene and quickly close in on the Iranian ship. This then releases the tow line and releases the drone again.
The incident, which took place in international waters, was strongly condemned by Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the US 5th Fleet.
The action was “unjustified and incompatible with the behavior of a professional naval force”.
The drone boat is a “Saildrone Explorer” type robot boat from the Californian company Saildrone, which is used by the US Navy, among others.
The autonomous watercraft, equipped with sensors, radar and cameras, will be used to collect data, according to the US Navy. The drones do not store any sensitive or secret information.
The drone boats are actually intended for scientific purposes. The unmanned robot ships are, for example, used for research purposes in the Southern Ocean and are also used by US authorities to collect data on storms in the Atlantic.
The military use of autonomous drones is not without controversy – especially when it comes to armed systems, unlike in this case. Critics argue that the decision to kill should not be made by a machine. Proponents speak of “humanitarian benefits” and sometimes believe that using the system would lead to fewer deaths.