Autonomous surface vessel maker contracts with Navy for drone boats
NewsDecember 09, 2025
AUSTIN, Tex. Autonomous-systems maker Saronic agreed to a $392 million production contract with the U.S. Navy to accelerate the delivery of autonomous surface vessels (ASVs), making the deal one of the Navy's largest OTA [Other Transaction Authority] agreements for maritime uncrewed systems.
Under the terms of the OTA, Saronic is tasked with supplying its Corsair-class ASV -- the biggest of the vessels in its uncrewed maritime systems portfolio -- to the U.S. Navy to operate in roles ranging from maritime domain awareness to intelligence collection and the delivery of kinetic or non-kinetic effects.
The blue-water-capable 24-foot Corsair has a range of roughly 1,000 nautical miles, a thousand-pound payload capacity, and an operational speed of 35 knots (approx. 40 mph) or better.
Navy officials stated that the OTA will be on a rapid timeline, with prototype to production in less than 12 months, a massive departure from traditional defense acquisition cycles that can stretch across years.
