Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its seizure of a US underwater drone demonstrated the reach of its surveillance around Hormuz, in a September 8 statement on its Persian-language social media account.

The IRGC Navy claimed it captured the vehicle through intelligence gathering and operational planning. US Central Command gave a different account, saying the Anduril Dive-LD had malfunctioned more than a day before Iran announced its seizure.

“No advanced technology can bypass our surveillance layers in the Strait of Hormuz,” IRGC spokesperson Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi said, according to the supplied Persian statement.

Mohebbi described the recovery as a dawn operation involving what he called the US military’s most advanced unmanned submarine. He also asserted Iranian dominance over the Gulf and told US forces to return to the Bay of Pigs.

Video released on September 8 by Iranian military channels, seen by IntelliNews. 

In a separate statement, the IRGC Navy said it seized the vehicle at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz early that morning. It claimed the submersible carried advanced underwater technology and had entered the US military fleet in 2025.

US Central Command spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins told DefenseScoop that the vehicle was an older model conducting surveys in support of regional operations. He said it had not collected sensitive data and carried no classified sonar or radar equipment.

An Anduril spokesperson told the publication that the Dive-LD was designed for hazardous environments where losing a vehicle was an anticipated possibility.

According to Anduril’s specifications, the autonomous underwater vehicle measures approximately 5.8 metres long and 1.2 metres in diameter. Its advertised capabilities include missions lasting around ten days and operations at depths of approximately 6,000 metres.

The manufacturer lists reconnaissance, mine warfare, seabed surveys and underwater infrastructure inspections among its applications. These specifications do not establish the equipment carried by the recovered vehicle.