Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) said recently that it has seized a US Navy Kingfish underwater drone in the Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins told Al Jazeera that the US retained, “positive control of all of our operational drone assets,” and said Iran’s claim was “clearly desperate."
IRGC spokesman Second Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi identified the claimed vehicle as an MK 18 Mod 2 Kingfish autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) in a social media post on Sunday, September 27. He valued it at several million dollars.
“This is not just a catch; it is a technological and intelligence trophy,” said Mohebbi.
The IRGCN’s initial statement, issued earlier on Sunday, identified the vehicle as a Remus 600 AUV and said it had been trapped during a “coordinated and complex operation” with intelligence and electronic-warfare support. The force alleged that the vehicle was conducting espionage and said it had been handed over to specialists to recover information.
The September 27 claim followed Iran’s reported recovery of a US Anduril Dive-LD underwater vehicle near the entrance to the strait on September 8. The Dive-LD and Kingfish are separate systems.
A Pentagon spokesperson said the Dive-LD had malfunctioned more than a day before it was recovered and was an older model. The spokesperson said it had collected no sensitive data and carried no sonar or radar gear designated as classified.
Anduril confirmed the loss and described Dive-LD as an attritable system designed to operate in dangerous environments where loss is possible.
If confirmed, the Kingfish recovery would be Iran’s second reported seizure of a US underwater system in September.
The US Navy’s MK 18 Mod 2 Kingfish is the mine countermeasures-optimised version of the Remus 600 AUV. The Navy says its sonar can search the seabed for possible mines, and the vehicle forms part of its expeditionary mine countermeasures capability.
The Kingfish is about 3.5 metres long and 32.4 centimetres in diameter, with a depth rating of 600 metres. Remus 600 configurations can vary with the installed sections and payload.
The US Navy said production of the MK 18 Mod 2 programme of record began in 2012 and was completed on February 3, 2023. More than 90 vehicles had been delivered to the fleet by that date.