Profile
- Type
- Naval unmanned surface vehicle
- Conflict side
- Ukraine
- Origin
- Ukraine
- Service note
- Introduced during the full-scale Russia-Ukraine War
Aircraft & UAVs
Sea Baby USV
Sea Baby is a Ukrainian naval unmanned surface vehicle developed and operated by the Security Service of Ukraine for long-range strike missions in the Black Sea. Official Ukrainian sources describe it as a small, fast USV able to carry a large explosive load over about 1,000 kilometers, giving Ukraine a domestically built means to attack Russian ships, port targets, and bridge infrastructure despite limited conventional naval forces.
- Conflict side
- Ukraine
- Built by
- Security Service of Ukraine
- Built in
- Ukraine
Service History
- In service
- Operational use disclosed by the Security Service of Ukraine in 2023
- Used by
- Security Service of Ukraine
- Wars
- Russia-Ukraine War
Production History
- Designer
- Security Service of Ukraine with civilian engineering support
- Designed
- Publicly disclosed in 2023
- Built by
- Security Service of Ukraine
- Built in
- Ukraine
- Unit cost
- About $221,000 in the 2024 United24 fundraiser
- Produced
- 2023-present
- Number built
- Not publicly disclosed
- Variants
- Explosive strike configuration, Rocket-armed and specialist payload configurations reported from 2024-2025
Specifications
- Crew
- Uncrewed, remotely operated
- Length
- 6 m
- Width
- 2 m
- Height above waterline
- 0.6 m
- Maximum speed
- 90 km/h
- Range
- Up to 1,000 km
- Combat load
- Up to 850 kg
- Engine power
- 400 hp
- Construction
- Hull material described by United24 as difficult to detect by radar
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: Ukraine
Operated by Ukraine's Security Service as a naval unmanned surface vehicle during the Russia-Ukraine War, including the July 2023 attack on the Crimean Bridge and strikes against Russian naval targets such as Olenegorsky Gornyak and the SIG tanker.
Related Weapon Systems
MAGURA V5Unmanned surface vesselThe MAGURA V5 is a Ukrainian unmanned surface vessel built for reconnaissance, patrol, mine-warfare, fleet-security, and strike missions. In the Russia-Ukraine War it became one of Ukraine's best documented naval drones, used by Defence Intelligence units for long-range Black Sea attacks against Russian naval vessels.Ukrainian Explosive Naval DronesExplosive unmanned surface vesselUkrainian explosive naval drones are low-profile unmanned surface vessels developed during the Russia-Ukraine War to extend Ukrainian strike reach in the Black Sea. The family includes MAGURA V5 drones associated with Defence Intelligence of Ukraine operations and Sea Baby drones associated with the Security Service of Ukraine, pairing remote or semi-autonomous control with large explosive payloads for attacks on Russian naval targets.
Bayraktar TB2Medium-altitude long-endurance UAVA Turkish unmanned aircraft used for reconnaissance and strike missions. It became especially prominent in the early phase of the full-scale invasion.
ForpostReconnaissance and strike unmanned aerial vehicleForpost is Russia's license-built and later indigenized derivative of the Israeli IAI Searcher II UAV, used for reconnaissance, target acquisition, artillery-fire adjustment, and in Forpost-R form armed strike missions. In the Russia-Ukraine War, Russian forces have used Forpost-R aircraft as higher-value reusable UAVs for surveillance and precision attack roles rather than expendable one-way drones.
Grad-armed Sea Baby dronesRocket-armed unmanned surface vesselGrad-armed Sea Baby drones are Ukrainian Security Service unmanned surface vessels adapted from the Sea Baby naval drone into a reusable coastal-strike platform. The variant replaces or supplements the explosive-boat role with a compact launcher for 122 mm Grad rockets, allowing Ukrainian operators to fire from the sea at shore targets such as Russian positions on the Kinburn Spit while retaining the Sea Baby platform's long range and high-speed unmanned surface-vehicle profile..jpg?width=480)
MiG-31Long-range interceptor and Kinzhal missile carrier variantThe MiG-31 is a Soviet-designed, twin-engine, two-seat long-range interceptor built for high-speed patrols, bomber interception, and wide-area air defense. In the Russia-Ukraine War, Russia's MiG-31K conversion has become important as the launch aircraft for Kh-47M2 Kinzhal air-launched ballistic missiles used in strikes against Ukraine.Sources
This is BattleshipPublisher: United24 | Note: Official Ukrainian government fundraiser page identifying Sea Baby as an SBU unmanned surface vehicle and listing dimensions, speed, range, combat load, engine power, and unit cost. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Sea drones are a unique SBU developmentPublisher: Security Service of Ukraine | Note: Direct conflict-use source for the Russia-Ukraine War: the SBU states that its marine surface drones attacked the Crimean Bridge in July 2023 and separate drones attacked Olenegorsky Gornyak and the SIG tanker; also supports SBU development and SeaBaby naming. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Ukraine's Sea Baby Maritime Drone (USV)Publisher: Covert Shores | Note: Specialist open-source naval analysis supporting Sea Baby background, role, payload variations, propulsion, communications, and comparative USV context. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Ukrainian marine drones.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image page attributes the Sea Baby image to the SBU press center and lists Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licensing. | Accessed: 2026-06-20