Royal Navy ship ‘surrounded’ by drone boat swarm

Five uncrewed boats remotely piloted from 500 miles away surrounded HMS Tyne during a three-day demonstration off the Scottish coast, marking what the Royal Navy called a milestone in its move toward a Hybrid Navy of crewed and uncrewed platforms.

The exercise, conducted by the Navy’s Disruptive Capabilities and Technology Office (DCTO) and the Fleet Experimentation Squadron (FXS), simulated the escort of a warship using a flotilla of 7.2-metre autonomous Rattler vessels.

The uncrewed boats were controlled from Patrick Blackett, moored in Portsmouth, while operating in Scottish waters in coordination with HMS Tyne, HMS Stirling Castle, HMS Biter and a Merlin helicopter.

Five uncrewed boats, remotely piloted from over 500 miles away, surrounded HMS Tyne in a major Royal Navy trial off Scotland, a key step toward a Hybrid Fleet of crewed and uncrewed vessels working together at sea. pic.twitter.com/avobMmoGmn

— UK Defence Journal (@UKDefJournal) November 1, 2025

Live data, video and sensor feeds were transmitted to controllers aboard Patrick Blackett, allowing the Rattlers to perform escort and surveillance tasks in real time. The Royal Navy said the demonstration was the culmination of months of trials, showing how uncrewed surface vessels could work alongside traditional ships in future operations.

The project was developed in collaboration with a consortium of small and medium-sized companies. Military personnel were directly involved in the design and testing process to ensure the boats met operational requirements, according to the Navy. Built on rigid inflatable boat hulls, the Rattlers are fitted with autonomy systems and modular payloads that can be tailored for missions such as reconnaissance, surveillance and payload delivery.

Each boat is controlled by a two-person team using a portable “plug and play” laptop system. The vessels can operate independently or as a swarm, following pre-programmed mission profiles or, in time, functioning autonomously without direct human control.

Commander Michael Hutchinson, who leads the Fleet Experimentation Squadron and commands Patrick Blackett, said in the press release that “this is a really important moment for the Royal Navy as we progress towards a Hybrid Navy of crewed and uncrewed platforms.”

He added that the uncrewed surface vessels had been “built and developed at pace, in a ground-breaking way, alongside a coalition of fantastic local companies.” Hutchinson described the project as “the most exciting of my career,” adding that the platforms would operate both in support of existing warships and as a capability in their own right.

“In recent years we have seen the effect that autonomy and uncrewed systems can have at sea, on land and in the air, especially in Ukraine,” he said. “In the maritime domain the effect has been remarkable, with simple, cheap, one-way effectors used to defeat complex and capable warships and deny them freedom of manoeuvre at sea.”

He noted that uncrewed surface vessels are also being used for reconnaissance, patrol and survey operations, making it “critical that the Navy develop these systems and train people with the skills to operate them.”

Brigadier Jaimie Roylance, the Royal Navy’s Chief Technology Officer, said in the press release that “this is an important moment in the history of the Royal Navy.” He called it “the first time we have been able to field a capable, mission-ready, deployable uncrewed system at sea” and the “first major success for the DCTO.”

Roylance praised the work of the FXS, Coastal Forces Squadron, Royal Marines and Army personnel, saying their efforts to develop the systems and training “have been astonishing and completed in record time.” He added that while more development lies ahead, “the wider consortium of SMEs we are working with are up to the task.”