SOF Week 2026: BlackSea showcases high-speed combat USV
StoryMay 20, 2026
Flavia Camargos Pereira
Military Embedded Systems
SOF WEEK 2026--TAMPA. Aiming at filling a capability gap in the defence market, Maryland-based robotic maritime supplier BlackSea Technologies is showcasing its "Comet" high-speed combat uncrewed surface vessel (USV) at the SOF Week 2026 exhibition, underway now in Tampa, Florida.
The Comet system, designed to fill the space between small tactical USVs and larger uncrewed combat craft, underwent various demonstrations with diverse payloads at the Tampa Convention Center’s Waterfront Exhibition space.
Todd Greene, BlackSea’s Director of Advanced Technologies, noted that the system also recently passed through testing with the U.S. military. "It is a modular launcher that you can put whatever else you want on. It carries 10,000 pounds of payload. So, we are trying to show off [at SOF Week] what 10,000 pounds looks like,” Greene said. “We see opportunities coming. We see a space in the market where it fills a mission need.”
During the demo, the system featured the BRAWLR missile system, EOS Defense Systems USA's 30-mm gun system, Leonardo DRS RADA RPS 42 MHR array radar, and a DECPT capability for signature management in contested maritime environments.
The vessel, at 13.1 meters (approx. 43 feet), was designed with a modular architecture to support a wide range of missions, such as counter-uncrewed aerial system (UAS), mine countermeasures, surface warfare, antisubmarine warfare, electronic warfare (EW), maritime domain awareness, and high-value unit escort. It is fitted with a Volvo Penta engine and can exceed a speed of 45 knots. Additionally, it features EO/IR capabilities and can support and be deployed with crewed assets.
Greene stated that the Comet is good for doing what he called the "dull, dirty, dangerous kind of work” that warfighters “would not want to do for a long period of time.
“If you look at, for example, the new LSM [the U.S. Navy’s Landing Ship Medium], that ship does not have any armament of its own,” Greene said. “If it is operating someplace where it would need protection, this [Comet] could be the kind of wingman running shotgun next to them.”
BlackSea already supplies the Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC) small USVs to the U.S. Navy. This 16-foot (4.9-m) long platform leverages a 200-horsepower engine that delivers a top speed of 40 knots and provides a payload capacity of up to 1,000 pounds (453.5 kg).
Built for high-speed, autonomous naval/Special Operations in contested environments, the aluminum-hulled GARC carries multiple sensors and was designed using an open systems architecture.
