Lockheed Martin and Saildrone: Accelerating Maritime Readiness at Scale
A six-month sprint culminated in the successful launch of two rounds from a Saildrone Surveyor at RIMPAC 2026, demonstrating how proven commercial platforms and defense technologies can be rapidly integrated to deliver new capability to the fleet.
Lockheed Martin and Saildrone put their rapid-integration approach to the test — successfully launching two rounds from a Surveyor-class Saildrone equipped with a JAGM Dual Launcher and remotely operated fire-control system at RIMPAC 2026.
The team also demonstrated a passive electronic warfare capability from the Saildrone Surveyor, detecting, classifying and identifying a surrogate threat radar system in conjunction with an MH-60S helicopter.
The demonstrations, conducted during Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2026 near Hawaii, mark a significant milestone in Lockheed Martin and Saildrone's effort to rapidly integrate proven defense capabilities onto commercial unmanned platforms.
But the story didn't start at RIMPAC.
It started months earlier with a shared objective: demonstrate how commercial technology and proven defense systems could be brought together to deliver new capability to the warfighter — and do it at a pace measured in months, not years.
From Investment to Impact
In October 2025, Lockheed Martin invested $50 million in Saildrone to advance unmanned surface vessel capabilities for the U.S. Navy. The partnership brought together Saildrone's experience operating unmanned vessels in complex maritime environments with Lockheed Martin's expertise in weapons, sensors, combat systems and mission integration.
The RIMPAC demonstration put that partnership to the test.
What followed was a rapid integration effort spanning engineers, program teams and subject matter experts across multiple organizations and locations. The team had to bring together systems that had never operated in this configuration, test them in increasingly realistic environments and prepare them for operations at sea — all within six months.
The result was more than a technology demonstration. It was a demonstration of a different way to deliver capability.
By pairing a proven commercial USV platform with established defense technologies, the team was able to rapidly integrate and demonstrate a new operational capability while reducing risk for future applications.
And RIMPAC is only the beginning.
What’s Next
The partnership is designed to accelerate the Navy’s unmanned vision at scale.
Lockheed Martin’s investment helps mitigate risk on the path to Distributed Maritime Operations and supports the Navy’s drive for affordable mass by 2027. The open-architecture approach and secure command-and-control framework ensure rapid, reliable integration while preserving security and interoperability.
The successful demonstration is the first in a series of planned efforts to integrate additional capabilities onto Saildrone platforms, including larger containerized payloads and the Lockheed Martin Mk 70 launcher and SURTASS Towed Array on the larger Saildrone Spectre platform.
Saildrone’s USVs are built for endurance and autonomy. Their long-established track record includes more than a decade operating in remote, open-ocean environments, with millions of nautical miles logged. First deployed by the U.S. Navy in 2021, they are currently operational today, working around the clock, 365-days alongside American Sailors in combat theaters across the globe.
Together, Lockheed Martin and Saildrone are working with the U.S. Navy and allies to accelerate the delivery of proven capabilities to the fleet — at the speed today's missions demand.