The drone boat used by the US military to rescue two crew members of a downed Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz on Monday was developed by a Texas-based defence technology company co-founded by Indian-American engineer Vibhav Altekar, according to company information and US military officials.
Historic Rescue Mission
The rescue marked what US Central Command described as the first known American personnel recovery mission involving an autonomous surface vessel. A US Army Apache attack helicopter went down off the coast of Oman while patrolling regional waters on Monday. The two crew members were rescued and reported safe.
"It was the first US rescue carried out by an autonomous surface vessel, remotely piloted by a human operator," Central Command spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins said on Tuesday.
The Vessel: Corsair
The vessel used in the operation was Corsair, an autonomous surface vessel developed by Austin, Texas-headquartered Saronic Technologies. According to the specifications provided on the company's official website, the Corsair is a "24-foot autonomous surface vessel (ASV)" capable of carrying up to 1,000 lbs over 1,000 nautical miles. The vessel can also travel at speeds of more than 35 knots and is designed for long-duration maritime missions.
"The surface drone that assisted in Monday's rescue of the Apache crew off the coast of Oman was a US Navy Corsair unmanned surface vessel operated by US 5th Fleet's Task Force 59," said Hawkins, which oversees American forces in the Middle East.
Indian-American Entrepreneur Involved
The rescue operation drew attention not only because of its military significance but also because of the involvement of Indian-American entrepreneur Vibhav Altekar, one of Saronic's four co-founders. Founded in September 2022, Saronic was established by former Navy SEAL Dino Mavrookas along with Altekar, Doug Lambert, and Rob Lehman.
According to Saronic's website, Altekar serves as Chief Technology Officer and "drives the development of the company's autonomous systems and software architecture." The company also said that he leads teams working across "perception, navigation, machine learning, command and control, and systems integration."
Altekar studied electrical engineering at the University of California and previously worked at defence technology firm Anduril. Saronic notes that at Anduril, he led engineering efforts on several programmes, including the Royal Australian Navy's Ghost Shark drone submarine project.
According to the company's LinkedIn profile, Saronic currently holds a $392 million production contract with the US Navy for autonomous surface vessels.
Military Significance
The US military has increasingly deployed unmanned surface and underwater vehicles for missions ranging from surveillance and maritime patrols to mine detection and reconnaissance. Military officials say such systems can reduce risks to personnel while expanding operational capabilities.
