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Build Log · Entry 04 16 Jul 2026

Wet Test 002, untethered in salt water

The first integrated prototype ran roughly one hour untethered in salt water, powered and responsive throughout. Pool trials got it there, carried in and out by a single operator.

Salt Water/Untethered/Vantage V0
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Video · First in-water propulsion and control test

Vantage V0 completed Wet Test 002: an untethered session in salt water lasting roughly one hour. The vehicle stayed powered, responsive, and operational for the full run.

The session demonstrated wireless command response, forward and reverse propulsion, transient attitude correction, and positive-buoyancy recovery.

With the core vehicle architecture now proven in water, development is advancing toward full closed-loop control and the pilot-ready V1 platform.

Vantage V0 carried under one arm after the pool test
Fig. 01 · Single-operator carry, post test
Vantage V0 held after coming out of the pool
Fig. 02 · Fresh out of the water

Salt water was not the first step. Ahead of open water we ran pool trials to validate trim, handling, and recovery routines.

The vehicle left the water the way it is meant to: carried by one person. No crane, no cradle, no support crew. Single-operator handling and rapid field deployment have shaped the hull since day one, and it held up in practice.

Pool first, then salt water. Both are now behind us.

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