A suspected US-made LUCAS one-way attack drone was reportedly recovered by fishermen after it was found drifting in the Strait of Hormuz in recent days. The discovery comes as US forces have expanded their use of the Iranian-style drone during the multi-month conflict, even publicizing a recent swarm attack involving explosive-laden unmanned boats against Iranian targets.

LUCAS stands for Low-Cost Unmanned Combat Attack System. The first indication that the drones had been deployed came just days into Operation Epic Fury. On March 3, US Central Command announced on X that, "for the first time in history," the US military had deployed "one-way attack drones" in combat.

LUCAS Drone

The drones have been so successful for the US that the Department of War's fiscal year 2027 procurement request for the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group (DAWG) has surged 243-fold to $54.6 billion; a clear acknowledgment that ongoing conflicts across Eurasia have produced one important lesson: cheap kamikaze drones are reshaping the modern battlefield.

Earlier this month, CENTCOM boasted on X about a swarm of Saronic Corsair one-way attack sea drones that struck Iran's Bandar Abbas Naval Base. The attack appeared to take a page directly from Ukraine's maritime warfare playbook against Russia.

The world is witnessing the opening phase of robotics and autonomous warfare on the modern battlefield. One-way attack drones and unmanned vessels are precursors to what comes next: humanoid combat robots potentially entering battlefield testing in Ukraine later this year (read here).