U.S. Navy sinks amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu using kamikaze sea drones

The U.S. Navy used kamikaze sea drones to sink the decommissioned Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5) during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2026 exercise.

The U.S. 3rd Fleet released footage of the sinking.

According to Naval News, the event marked a significant step in the Navy’s efforts to field autonomous strike drones across the air, surface, and subsurface domains.

The use of one-way attack sea drones was likely one of the most notable episodes of the multinational exercise. It gave allied nations and potential adversaries a closer look at U.S. naval capabilities, which have incorporated lessons from Ukraine’s successful attacks against Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

In addition to the sea drones, Harpoon, Spike, and LRASM missiles were used during the sinking exercise. After the missile strikes were assessed, two sea drones approached the decommissioned amphibious assault ship and detonated near the waterline.

In late July, Ukrainian company UForce and U.S.-based ReconCraft signed a memorandum on the licensed production of Magura family sea drones in the United States.

ReconCraft co-founder Joe Silkowski said the partnership aims to produce hundreds—and eventually thousands—of Magura sea drones annually. The value of the agreement has not been disclosed.

In a comment to Militarnyi, UForce noted that adapting the Magura platform to U.S. requirements will require significant modifications due to major differences between the operating conditions in the Black Sea and other maritime theaters. According to the company, those differences are so substantial that there is no such thing as a truly “universal” sea drone.