Iran Escalates Drone Hunts in Strait of Hormuz to Gather US Military Intel, Experts Warn

Iran is deliberately targeting U.S. naval drones in the Strait of Hormuz to gather intelligence on American surveillance capabilities and learn how to evade U.S. defenses, drone experts warned. This coordinated strategy involves exposing critical insights into U.S. Navy theater operations in the vital maritime choke point, even when classified data remains uncompromised.

The escalation comes amid heightened tensions in the Gulf region. On September 14, the U.S. military destroyed two Iranian small boats following an attempted seizure by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of an American unmanned surface vessel (USV) patrolling the area.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins confirmed the attempted seizure. "Iranian small boats recently attempted to take possession of a U.S. unmanned surface vessel, but they were unsuccessful after CENTCOM forcefully responded," Hawkins stated. "The surface drone remains under U.S. operational control."

Cameron Chell, CEO of drone manufacturer Draganfly, described Iran's actions as "very coordinated, absolutely deliberate drone capture missions." He warned that even brief examination of a captured drone could provide Tehran with immediate tactical advantages by revealing how the U.S. conducts surveillance and how to counter those systems.

"If Iran captures a drone, it could give them an immediate tactical advantage," Chell said. "It may not yield specific classified data, but it gives insight into the theater of operations, which at any given moment offers an advantage. I wouldn’t doubt it for a heartbeat that it is escalating."

This latest incident follows a September 8 event where Iran captured a Dive-LD autonomous underwater drone manufactured by defense contractor Anduril. While Anduril CEO Palmer Luckey noted the drone was designed for hazardous environments where capture is a possibility, Iran’s embassy in Hyderabad posted on X, "Unboxing ceremony by our reverse engineers, tomorrow morning!"

U.S. Navy representatives, however, stated the recovered drone was an older model that had malfunctioned. Regardless, Chell emphasized that any access to captured hardware allows Iranian forces to evaluate sensitive onboard sensors and gain a comprehensive understanding of how to counter U.S. intelligence-gathering methods.

Iran has a history of leveraging captured U.S. assets to bolster its domestic technology and regional propaganda. In 2011, Iran claimed to reverse-engineer an RQ-170 Sentinel stealth drone seized by its forces. More recently, in 2022, a U.S. Navy patrol ship and helicopter intercepted an Iranian vessel attempting to tow a Saildrone surface vessel in the Gulf.

"Iran actually has a history of attempting this in the past, and at times has been successful," Chell said, referencing the RQ-170 seizure, noting that many Iranian drones bear a resemblance to the RQ line. "There is no question that autonomy and unmanned systems are the new standard in warfare."