Exail Achieves World First With 1,100-nautical-mile Autonomous USV Transit Across Gibraltar Strait

Exail has achieved a major milestone in maritime autonomy with its DriX O-16 transoceanic uncrewed surface vehicle (USV). The 16-meter platform has just completed an unprecedented 1,100-nautical-mile (2,000 km) transit from La Ciotat – France, to Troia – Portugal, to join NATO’s REPMUS 2025 exercise.

Sailing past the Balearic Islands and through the Strait of Gibraltar, one of the world’s busiest maritime passages, the DriX O-16 completed the voyage in six days without port calls. Operated in supervised autonomy from Exail’s Remote Operation Center (ROC) in La Ciotat, the mission demonstrated endurance, situational awareness, and reliable decision-making in dense traffic.

A decisive step in operational maturity
This long-range deployment confirms the robustness, safety, and operational readiness of Exail’s surface drone technology. More than a symbolic crossing, it provides concrete proof that large USVs can be remotely supervised across open waters and constrained sea lanes, arriving fully mission-capable in theater without heavy logistical support. During the transit, the DriX O-16 also conducted seabed mapping operations with a Kongsberg EM304 multibeam echosounder, further demonstrating its capacity to deliver valuable data while underway.

“With this unprecedented long-range transit, Exail’s DriX O-16 shows that large USVs are now an operational reality,” said Sébastien Grall, Head of Maritime Autonomy Solutions at Exail. “As the first uncrewed platform to successfully execute such a mission, it sets a new benchmark in surface autonomy—safe, reliable, and mission-ready.”