Profile
- Type
- Remote-controlled explosive boat
- Conflict side
- Houthi-aligned forces
- Origin
- Yemen
- Service note
- Yemen Civil War
Naval Systems
Waterborne improvised explosive device
The waterborne improvised explosive device is a Houthi-operated explosive boat used in Yemen's Red Sea maritime campaign. CAR and U.S. naval reporting link the system to remote-controlled attacks on Saudi and commercial shipping, combining a small craft hull with improvised explosive payloads and guidance hardware.
- Conflict side
- Houthi-aligned forces
- Built by
- Houthi forces
- Built in
- Yemen
Service History
- Used by
- Houthi-aligned forces
- Wars
- Yemen Civil War
Production History
- Built by
- Houthi forces
- Built in
- Yemen
Specifications
- Control
- Remote-controlled with camera, GPS, and throttle connections
- Payload
- Improvised explosive charge; CAR documented a P-15 warhead in one example
- Platform
- Converted small craft or fishing boat hull
- Propulsion
- Small motor boat / outboard-driven craft
Conflict Usage
- Yemen Civil War
- Side: Houthi-aligned forcesRole: Explosive attack boat
Used by Houthi-aligned forces in the Yemen Civil War for explosive boat attacks against Saudi and commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
Related Weapon Systems
Al-Mandab-1 anti-ship cruise missileAnti-ship cruise missileAl-Mandab-1 is the Houthi designation for a Chinese C-801-family anti-ship cruise missile. Open-source reporting ties it to pre-war Yemeni stocks and shows Houthi forces fielding it during the Yemen Civil War, while the exact C-801 or C-802 variant remains uncertain.
Al-Mandab-2 anti-ship cruise missileAnti-ship cruise missileAl-Mandab-2 is the Houthi designation for a long-range anti-ship cruise missile used in the Yemen Civil War against Red Sea shipping. UN reporting described it as a seven-meter, 300-kilometer system with micro-turbojet propulsion and noted strong external similarities to the C-802 and Iran's Ghader/Ghadir family.C-801 anti-ship missileAnti-ship cruise missileThe C-801 is China's export version of the YJ-8, a solid-rocket, sea-skimming anti-ship missile that entered Yemeni inventories before the civil war and was later assessed as likely used by Houthi forces in the 2016 Bab el-Mandab attacks.
C-802 anti-ship missileAnti-ship cruise missileThe C-802 is a Chinese export anti-ship cruise missile built by CASIC's Third Academy. In Yemen Civil War reporting, it is the class believed to have been used by Houthi-aligned forces in the October 2016 Red Sea attacks on HSV-2 Swift and USS Mason.
Ghader anti-ship cruise missileAnti-ship cruise missileThe Ghader, also reported as Qader, is Iran's 200-kilometre C-802-derived anti-ship cruise missile. In the Yemen Civil War, Houthi forces' anti-shipping arsenal included Iranian-supplied Nour and Ghadar missiles used to threaten Red Sea shipping..jpg?width=480)
Iranian anti-ship missile systemsAnti-ship missile systemIranian anti-ship missile systems combine coastal-defense cruise missiles and longer-range anti-warship missiles to threaten shipping across the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman. In the United States-Iran Conflict, they form a core part of Iran's maritime-denial posture against U.S. and commercial traffic.Sources
Anatomy of a 'Drone Boat' PDFPublisher: Conflict Armament Research | Note: CAR report on a water-borne improvised explosive device deployed by Houthi forces in the Yemen Civil War; documents the remote-control, camera/GPS, and warhead details. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Anatomy of a 'Drone Boat'Publisher: Conflict Armament Research | Note: CAR analysis of a water-borne improvised explosive device deployed by Houthi forces in the Yemen Civil War; used for cover image provenance. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Worldwide Threat to Shipping report excerptPublisher: Office of Naval Intelligence | Note: In the Yemen Civil War, ONI reported that the Houthis deployed two explosives-laden remote-controlled boats against Saudi Arabia's Jizan Port. | Accessed: 2026-06-20