Lifeguards may soon be able to take a breather if a bunch of Iranian engineers have their way. They’re building drones capable of delivering rescue devices to drowning victims.

Yes, drones, those little robotic things usually used for reconnaissance, or blowing the crap out of terrorists, have now been souped up to save lives – and the idea has ironically come from one of the countries most targeted by the more offensive variety of drone

The Verge reports that Pars is a multirotor drone designed by Tehran-based RTS Lab, built to carry and drop flotation devices for swimmers who’ve gotten into difficulty in the sea.  Now a functioning prototype, Pars was recently tested in the Caspian Sea, about 200 miles from Tehran. The Caspian has seen its share of drowning victims over the years, which makes it the perfect place to test if Pars can really help save lives.

The point of Pars is to help lifeguards save more live,  especially in situations when drowning victims outnumber the available lifeguards.  Aside from dropping multiple flotation devices to conscious victims to buy time until the lifeguard reaches them, the drones can also help find unconscious victims, and then drop aid once the lifeguard gets there.  This helps the lifeguard swim unhindered as he or she no longer have to swim whilst carrying aid, meaning the lifeguard can reach the victim faster.

Aside from carrying multiple flotation devices and aids, the drone is equipped with GPS to track its navigation, as well as to get back to its sea platform where it can be charged using solar power.  It will also come with an FLIR thermal camera to help detect people in the dark as well as LED lights to aid in night time rescues.

In recent tests, Pars was pitted against a real life guard in rescuing a volunteer “drowning person” 75 meters away.  The test showed that Pars successfully deployed a floatation device in just 22 seconds, almost 50 seconds faster than the lifeguard.  When somebody’s life is on the line, every second counts.

There are still some kinks to be ironed out in Pars, but RTS Labs plans to introduce the life saving device internationally if it gets enough funding to push through with the project.