ABS awarded Classification to the Saildrone Surveyor, a fully autonomous deepwater unmanned surface vehicle (USV). At 20 metres long and capable of unmanned operations across all of the world’s oceans, the Surveyor breaks new ground.
The Surveyor is the largest class of USVs from Saildrone, a provider of maritime security, ocean mapping, and meteorological and oceanographic data using unmanned autonomous assets.
Investments in ABS’ technical capability
“ABS and Saildrone are pioneering new frontiers, setting the pace for innovation. This step forward is a result of our investments in ABS’ technical capability and helping to ensure our Rules are able to support innovation with an unwavering focus on safety,” said Patrick Ryan, ABS Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer.
ABS class certification
“The ABS class certification is more than a certificate — it’s a signal to governments and the maritime industry that Saildrone USVs are mature, safe, tested, and ready for scale,” said Richard Jenkins, Saildrone's Founder and CEO, adding “It’s been a very large investment and a multi-year process to achieve ABS Class Certification, but we are proud to be the first company in the world to do so and proud that our systems have reached the highest standards as required by the ABS Class certificate.”
Range of maritime domain awareness tasks
The 20-metre Surveyor is capable of long-endurance missions in the open ocean
The 20-metre Surveyor is capable of long-endurance missions in the open ocean, collecting deep-ocean bathymetry and performing a wide range of maritime domain awareness tasks.
This milestone follows the smaller 10-metre Voyager, which achieved ABS Class in 2023 and is designed for persistent surveillance in coastal and near-shore environments.
Fully autonomous operations
Saildrone USVs are capable of fully autonomous operations with no human onboard and are remotely monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week by the company’s global Mission Management team.
ABS is collaborating with industry, government regulators and stakeholders in the design and implementation of the world’s most advanced remote-control and autonomous technology.
