The Ukrainian company AeroDrone has signed an agreement with the Ministry of Defense to supply the first batch of drones to the Armed Forces.
Source. This was reported by dev.ua.
We are talking about two models of the company – D-80 Discovery and E-300 Enterprise, which are capable of carrying 80 and 300 kg.
"We have passed the certification. This is an authorization for operation in the armed forces for both of our models. We also signed an agreement with the Ministry of Defense. We are now in the process of mass production. We are not allowed to disclose the number. The first samples of drones will be in controlled operation of the Armed Forces (when your product is used and you get feedback). We have already identified the units that will use them," said Dmytro Shymkiv, co-owner of the company.
The cost of Ukrainian "iron birds" depends on the technical equipment of a particular model.
"It can cost from $250,000 to $450,000. It all depends on the filling that the customer wants. I'll just give you the range of prices for professional cameras: they cost from $20,000 to $320,000," Shymkiv said.
The autoplane can cover more than 1000 km of autonomous flight.
"If you install a 350-liter tank, the distance can be increased even to 3100 km. You can vary it: the drone has a payload. Part of it goes to fuel, part to cargo. It depends on the purpose of the flight," explained the company's co-owner.
Earlier, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that Ukraine would form the world's first UAV strike companies.
In October, the Ukrainian company Ukrspecsystems presented the development of a new reconnaissance UAV "Shark" with an extended range.
As reported, on January 28, the Defense Ministry signed 16 contracts with Ukrainian UAV manufacturers.