The Armada's Experimentation and Unmanned Vehicle Center receives the unmanned surface vehicle ‘SEAD23’

For approximately two years, the Armada has been testing the SEAD23 surface drone, participating in exercises such as REPMUS, BALTOPS 24, and DYNAMIC MESSENGER

On December 9, the Navy's Experimentation and Unmanned Vehicles Center (CEVENTA) received the SEAD23 surface drone at Rota Naval Base. Manufactured by the Pontevedra-based company ‘Seadrone’, part of the Zelenza group, the drone underwent two years of evaluation, which determined its potential for the Armada.

Now, training for its operators has begun with support of personnel from the company ‘Seadrone-Zelenza’, in order to start the experimental campaign early next year. The purpose of this campaign is to integrate payloads, developed by domestic industry, that will increase the combat capabilities of the SEAD23. These payloads include, for example, the installation of a remote weapon station (RWS) and loitering munitions. The Armada expects the drone to be fully operational by next September.

With this acquisition, the Fleet enhances its capabilities, as CEVENTA highlights the USV drone's satellite link, which will allow it to operate with a range limited only by its fuel capacity. It also emphasizes its speed, payload capacity, and low radar signature.

The SEAD23 surface drone recently acquired by the Armada began its service in the European project “OCEAN 2020,” deployed aboard the F-80 frigate ‘Santa María’. Its silhouette is well-known at the Portuguese Navy's Operational Experimentation Center (CEOM), where it participated in three editions of Exercise REPMUS and twice in Exercise DYNAMIC MESSENGER. It is also no stranger to amphibious environments, having participated in DÉDALO 23, FLOTEX 23, and BALTOPS 24 aboard the LPD ‘Castilla’ and the LHD ‘Juan Carlos I’. Finally, in 2025, it participated in DYNAMIC MARINER 25, acting as an opposing force from Rota Naval Base.

‘Seadrone’ has been working for approximately three years on the development of the SEAD23. During this time, the Armada's experimentation center, in collaboration with the supplier, has been working to improve its design and incorporate new capabilities. The SEAD23 has been deployed on different ships like frigates and the ‘Juan Carlos I’ over the past two years to test the vessel and adapt it to the naval conditions, like operating the drone from a platform that moves at sea.

Technical Specifications

The SEAD 23 has a length of 7 meters and a 250 HP engine that gives it a top speed of 30 knots. It has enough fuel to travel 200 nautical miles at 15 knots and a payload capacity of 300 kg. Its basic configuration includes a multibeam sonar, a surface radar, an AIS transceiver, and an EO/IR camera. It is capable of using three different types of links: satellite, radio frequency, and 5G, automatically switching between them to achieve optimal connectivity.

About the Armada's Experimentation and Unmanned Vehicle Center

The center was established to guide the Armada's efforts in defining the capabilities the Fleet needs in the new scenarios, as well as to maintain contact with the defense and innovation industry to meet the Armada's requirements for these new capabilities. The center's fundamental mission is to serve as an integrating hub for all activities related to promoting R&D&I in unmanned systems and emerging technologies with potential applications in the naval field. In addition, it establishes criteria for their procurement and tests methods in naval exercises and maneuvers, both national and within NATO. Led by a Navy captain under the Fleet's command, the types of drones evaluated by this center are classified as UUVs (underwater), USVs (surface), UGVs (ground), and UAVs (aerial).