US sea drones strike Bandar Abbas submarine base in first combat use of armed USVs
Incident Report
Fact Sheet
| Date | 12 Jul 2026 |
| Tracker | Strait of Hormuz Tensions |
| Type | Strike |
| Location |
Bandar Abbas, Iran
27.20, 56.29 (approximate) |
What Happened
Three Saronic Corsair one-way attack unmanned surface vessels struck Iran's Bandar Abbas Naval Base over the weekend of July 12-13, destroying a docked Ghadir-class midget submarine in what US Central Command described as the first combat employment of armed sea drones by American forces. CENTCOM said the strike degraded Iran's ability to continue attacking commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz. The attack came as US and Israeli strikes resumed following the collapse of the Islamabad Memorandum ceasefire framework agreed in mid-June.
Sources
Measured Footprint
| Series | That day | Prior 30-day avg | Week after vs before |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transits | 3 -81% | 15.7 | -65% (95 → 33) |
| Tankers | 1 -87% | 7.8 | -75% (51 → 13) |
| Cargo ships | 2 -74% | 7.8 | -55% (44 → 20) |
Daily figures from IMF PortWatch around July 12, 2026; the day's value is compared with the trailing 30-day average. Week comparisons are shown only when the series covers both full weeks.
Bandar Abbas, Iran
Marker placed at city precision.
Activity Around the Incident
Commercial ship transits of the Strait of Hormuz, two weeks either side
Daily counts from IMF PortWatch; the highlighted bar is the incident day, July 12, 2026.
Incidents Around the Same Period
Nearest logged incidents
| Date | Type | Incident |
|---|---|---|
| 13 Apr 2024 | Interception | Iranian commandos rappel from helicopter to seize container ship MSC Aries near Strait of Hormuz |
| 14 Nov 2025 | Interception | Iran's IRGC seizes Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Talara off Khor Fakkan |
| 28 Feb 2026 | Strike | US opening strikes destroy Iran's fleet at Bandar Abbas as Hormuz transits collapse |
| 23 Jul 2026 | Diplomatic | Germany withdraws minehunters positioned for a Hormuz clearing mission |