Spanish autonomy system completes US Special Forces maritime exercise aboard unmanned surface vessel
UAV Navigation–Grupo Oesía said its autonomous control system successfully guided an unmanned surface vessel during recent U.S. Special Forces maritime exercises in Cartagena, Spain.
The system was installed on NEWT21’s FOG USV platform and carried out a fully autonomous navigation plan under operational conditions. The company said the demonstration included dynamic relative routing, collision avoidance during approach to a mothership, and fault-tolerant health monitoring. Those functions are central to maritime reconnaissance and surveillance missions, where direct human intervention may be limited or unavailable.
The exercise marks an operational validation for the Spanish company’s maritime guidance, navigation and control stack. It also highlights growing demand for autonomy systems that can move beyond controlled trials and perform in realistic military environments. Defense buyers are placing greater weight on systems that have been tested in the field and can support missions with high navigation complexity and low tolerance for failure.
UAV Navigation–Grupo Oesía brings experience from aerospace and defense programs including the Eurofighter EF-2000, A-400M and MH-60R, and it is also involved in the FCAS/NGWS and Eurodrone programs. That background may help its case as allied governments expand spending on uncrewed systems and seek suppliers with established records in certified guidance and control technologies.
The Cartagena event also points to a wider shift in maritime operations, with European unmanned surface platforms taking a larger role in missions tied to U.S. special operations and NATO capability development. For Grupo Oesía, the Madrid-based defense and aerospace technology group that operates in 42 countries, the exercise strengthens the case for Spanish autonomy technology as militaries accelerate investment in uncrewed maritime capability.