Iran Says It Captured US Submarine Drone in Strait of Hormuz

Published On 09 Sep, 2026
iran-says-it-captured-us-submarine-drone-in-strait-of-hormuz

Iranian state media said the vessel was a Dive-LD, a ​large autonomous underwater vehicle built by California defense firm Anduril. The 19-foot (5.8-metre) ⁠submersible can carry out missions including mine countermeasures, seabed mapping, intelligence gathering and the ​inspection of underwater infrastructure such as cables and pipelines, the company has said.

“We trapped one ​of the most modern, intelligent and unmanned submarines of the terrorist American army at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. This submersible is equipped with the latest technologies,” the Revolutionary Guards Navy said ​in a statement carried by Iranian state media.

In response, a Pentagon spokesperson said an ​underwater drone had “malfunctioned more than a day ago.”

“It was surveying regional waters in support of ongoing operations. ‌The ⁠defective drone was an older model that neither collected sensitive data nor carried any classified sonar or radar equipment,” the spokesperson said.

Anduril confirmed the loss of one of its vessels, but downplayed the significance of the incident.