CDR Salamander - U.S. Navy's Perfectly Named Corsair Takes Out Iranian Submarine

It was only a matter of time…and what a way to do it.

• Iran: check

• Submarine: check

• Shipyard: check

• Daylight: check

• “Just another day in the office.” vibe: check

I like the matter-of-fact verbiage from DVIDS:

Using multiple one-way attack surface drones, CENTCOM forces successfully struck a submarine and ship maintenance facility in Iran, July 12, 2026. Three Corsair unmanned surface vessels hit the port at Bandar Abbas Naval Base, marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations. The strikes degraded Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial shipping.

As Mehdi pointed out, just drove right in like we owned the place.

You can find it on google earth at N 27.140700, E 056.211584.

If the Corsair sounds familiar, it is because we covered Saronic’s boat a month ago. She’s the one that picked up the Apache helo pilots who found themselves in the drink after being shot down—the accidental CSAR at sea.

The Corsair is a multi-tool. It can pick up your airmen, and it can also take out your enemy's submarines and shipyard facilities.

Just go watch that video again while humming the national anthem. You’ll feel better about everything, I promise.

Now that you’re in a great mood, ponder the opportunities now that we’ve broken that attack USV (or surface RAS, whatever) seal.

• More, better, faster, forward deployed.

• Taiwan, call your office.

• If we and the Ukrainians can do it, so can other people. Arm your ships and shipyards accordingly.

• Ponder how you blind it (other nations’ version of the Corsair), and make it deaf and mute while you are at it…because it is coming our way.

Expect a lot more.

The US Navy has been building a family of USVs and recently replaced its Modular Surface Attack Craft (MASC) program for the medium unmanned surface vessel (MUSV) marketplace.

The requirements for the designs include that the unmanned vessels have a range of 2,500 nautical miles with a speed of 25 knots in rough sea conditions. Each vessel should be able to carry 25 metric tons of containerized payload to carry out a variety of missions including strike, ISR, and transport.

According to the US Navy, “the MUSV marketplace creates new opportunities for smaller, non-traditional shipyards to build our future fleet. This initiative represents a strategic shift in naval acquisition, designed to rapidly field unmanned technologies by leveraging mature, existing commercial solutions.”

The US Navy recently announced seven companies that will be advancing to the at-sea testing phase: Sea Machines, Leidos, Saronic, Galliano Marine Services, PacMar Technologies, Birdon, and Huntington Ingalls Industries.

The companies that successfully complete the at-sea testing, which will be completed by this coming October, will receive $15 million for follow-on production.

Pay attention. Sometimes, like Hemingway’s description of bankruptcy, naval weapons developments happen suddenly, then all at once.

Big things are moving. Keep in front of it.

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