Naval News had the opportunity to interview Todd Greene, Director of Advanced Technologies at BlackSea Technologies, about their Comet and Chaser unmanned surface vehicles (USV), with initial production articles on display at Sea Air Space 2026.
Comet is BlackSea’s larger USV, standing at roughly 13.1 meters (~42ft 11in) in length with maximum payload of 10,000 lbs including fuel. It’s larger size allows Comet to carry a variety of payloads to fit a multitude of missions, including C-UAS, ISR, high value escort, and mine countermeasures.
The Comet at Sea Air Space 2026 had been outfitted to represent a potential C-UAS/Anti-Air Warfare load out, featuring models of 2 AIM-9X Sidewinder air to air infrared missiles and 2 AGM-114 Hellfires mounted on Sierra Nevada’s Battery Revolving Adaptive Weapons Launcher (BRAWLR), which can be outfitted with different munitions depending on the mission set. Accompanying BRAWLR were 4 Leonardo DRS RADA Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar arrays and EO/IR cameras to provide target tracking and acquisition.
“From our perspective this is a truck, a truck that can carry 10,000 lbs of whatever mission you want.”
– Todd Greene, Director of Advanced Technologies at Black Sea Technologies
Comet is rated for 1000 Nautical Miles of Endurance with a 3,000 lbs payload in Sea State 3 at 40 knots, with a maximum speed of 45 knots. Both Comet and Chaser are manufactured in Baltimore, Maryland at Black Sea’s established production facilities which have already produced over 300 Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC) Block 1s.
About Chaser USV / GARC block II
Chaser, also known as GARC block II, is meant to be an enhanced iteration on the already proven GARC Block 1s. Improvements include further weapons integration, a slightly larger profile over the initial GARC, and a design influenced by GARC’s ~5,000 hours of operational experience.
Due to it’s truncated size relative to Comet, Chaser can be fitted into and deployed out of a 20ft shipping container, allowing for greater operational flexibility, also helped by Chaser’s enhanced size allowing for a roughly 600-800 nautical mile endurance at 20 knots. Additionally, both Chaser and Comet can be fitted with a custom wrap which reduces the vessel’s infra-red signature, improving their survivability in contested environments.
