Surveyor
Surveyor is Saildrone large uncrewed surface vehicle for deep-ocean mapping, maritime ISR and long-range defense missions. It carries sonar, communications and sensing payloads for persistent operations across blue-water environments.
Facts
- Company: Saildrone
- Product type: Uncrewed Surface Vehicle
- Status: Commercial
- Capability focus: Generalist
- Website: https://www.saildrone.com/platform/surveyor
Market context
Saildrone Surveyor is Saildrone's 72-foot uncrewed surface vehicle for deep-ocean mapping, maritime data collection and defence payload integration.
- Target environment: Open ocean, deep-water survey areas, maritime security zones and naval operating environments.
- Workflow context: Bathymetric mapping, ocean data collection, maritime domain awareness, persistent patrol and payload carriage.
- Deployment model: Uncrewed surface vessel operated for ocean survey, ISR, hydrographic mapping and mission payload work.
- Commercial maturity: Public Saildrone platform with operational ocean data missions and defence integration activity.
- Adoption constraints: Requires mission planning, maritime permissions, payload integration, shore support and long-duration vessel operations.
- Market position: Large USV for persistent ocean operations, combining survey endurance with expanding defence mission scope.
- Adjacent products: Large uncrewed vessel for ocean mapping, maritime awareness and naval mission payloads.
Audience
Marine operators
Workflow
Bathymetric mapping, ocean data collection, maritime domain awareness, persistent patrol and payload carriage.
Deployment environment
Open ocean, deep-water survey areas, maritime security zones and naval operating environments.
Specifications
- Endurance Profile: Multi-month deep-water operations
- Status: Commercially deployed
- Form Type: Large ocean survey drone
- Length: 22 m
- Propulsion: Diesel-electric
- Power: Diesel generator
- Sensors Summary: PTZ infrared camera, radar, AIS transceiver, passive acoustics, deep-water seafloor mapping sonar
- Camera: PTZ infrared camera
- Operational Role: Deep-water ocean survey, bathymetric mapping, maritime surveillance
- Operational Environment: Open ocean, deep water, global
- Radar: Marine radar
- Workflow Focus: Deep-water bathymetric survey, maritime domain awareness, defence ISR
- Autonomy Model: Autonomous waypoint navigation
- Communication: Satellite (Starlink)
- Deployment Maturity: Commercially deployed
Tags
- Peer Group: Maritime USV
- Workflow: Marine data collection
- Capability: Autonomous navigation
- Deployment Environment: Outdoor field environment
- Stack Layer: Finished robot platform
- Commercial Stage: Commercial product
Articles
- 2026-04-07 - Note - Maritime autonomy is broadening
Timeline / Research
- 2025-05-06 - Regulatory - American Bureau of Shipping issues full classification for Saildrone Surveyor - Saildrone announced that the Surveyor platform received full classification from the American Bureau of Shipping.…
Comparable Systems
- Explorer - Saildrone - Uncrewed Surface Vehicle
- Voyager - Saildrone - Uncrewed Surface Vehicle
Surveyor canonical Korthos profile