Spartan Scout

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The Spartan Scout is a crewless surface watercraft, also known as an unmanned surface vehicle (USV) developed by the United States in 2001, and first demonstrated in late 2003. The craft, a rigid hull inflatable boat, weighs two tons, and is seven meters (23 ft) in length. It has a .50 caliber machine gun, as well as various sensors such as electro-optical and infrared surveillance and surface search radar. The Spartan is capable of carrying a 3,000 lb payload. According to a press release from the US Navy, the Spartan Scout will also come in a 11-meter version, capable of carrying a 5,000 lb payload.

Although a two-man boat crew is needed to deploy the Spartan Scout, once deployed it is capable of working autonomously or semi-autonomously. During its demonstration deployment, the Spartan Scout was configured for surface surveillance and force protection, although it can potentially be configured for more complex missions.