BOMA 2026: Kraken's K3 Scout USV integrated with Perennial Autonomy's Bumblebee V1 UAVs

A Kraken Technologies K3 Scout USV integrated with six Bumblebee V1 UAVs during Nato's military exercise BOMA on 11 September 2026. (Janes/Tamara Rozouvan)

Kraken Technologies' K3 Scout unmanned surface vehicle has been integrated with Perennial Autonomy's Bumblebee V1 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) during NATO's military exercise Bold Machina (BOMA) 2026 taking place from 7-15 September at the Lisbon Naval Base, in Alfeite, Portugal.

A total of six Bumblebee V1 UAVs were installed inside the main body of the USV, a Kraken Technologies representative told Janes . The integration at BOMA is the third iteration of Perennial Autonomy's collaboration with Kraken Technologies at similar events. Janes understands from a series of conversations at BOMA that the collaboration is more than 12 months old.

During BOMA, the integration yielded “successful” automated launches from the USV, according to a defence source. The speed and the range of the launches were described as being “exactly where we want them to be”. The antenna framework on the Bumblebee V1 UAV was tested within a range of one km of the K3 Scout USV. “But that's not the theoretical limit of that antenna,” according to the defence source.

Bumblebee V1

As Janes understands, the so-called key air gap is between the UAV and the ground control station on board the USV. The gap between the operator and the ground control station is only limited by the network architecture being used. “If you're using the internet you could be controlling that UAV, as long as the UAV can communicate to the ground control station, from anywhere in the world,” the defence source said.