Why navies still matter in the age of drones
10 Jul 2026|Sean Andrews
At sea, drones are disruptive, but they are not decisive. They complicate the maritime fight, but they do not replace the enduring strategic logic of sea power.
Combat in the Black Sea and Persian Gulf demonstrate this.
Ukrainian uncrewed boats and aircraft have caused the Russian navy to withdraw from the more exposed areas of the Black Sea, but Ukraine hasn’t achieved control of the area in any measure. Both countries’ need for access for trade purposes has created a truce of sorts, allowing Russian and Ukrainian trade to move unhindered.
Iran achieved limited denial in the Strait of Hormuz, and by doing so in a chokepoint gained great effect on global energy flows. Again, it didn’t achieve sea control.
The debate over whether drones will make navies obsolete has become one of the most persistent and most misleading arguments in contemporary strategy. The imagery is seductive: cheap, fast, expendable drones humiliating billion-dollar warships; swarms overwhelming layered defences; small actors imposing strategic paralysis on larger fleets. But the conclusion that navies are entering their twilight is wrong.
https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/why-navies-still-matter-in-the-age-of-drones/
