Military drones from Ukraine: F-Drones delivers 2,000 F10 to the US for the Pentagon in a first

Military drones of Ukrainian manufacture are going to the US for the first time: drone maker F-Drones has delivered 2,000 F10 attack drones there, based on a contract previously concluded with the Pentagon. This required Ukraine's state export control authority to approve, for the first time, the export of a batch of operational combat drones to the US.

According to a Ukrainian military publication, it is also a first that the government, under the martial law in force in Ukraine, has officially given the green light for the export of fully assembled, domestically manufactured military drones. Previous comparable approvals and decisions applied only to the transfer of certain technologies, components or parts – complete weapon systems were not included.

As F-Drones reports, one drone shipment has already crossed the Ukrainian border; it is due to be handed over to the US military for training and testing later this month. The basis is a contract that F-Drones concluded as a winner of the first phase of the US government's “Drone Dominance” programme. According to the company, the approval had already been granted before the decisions of the new Cabinet of Ministers took effect, which generally simplify the export of goods for military purposes under martial law.

A complex logistical phase still lies ahead, but we expect the drones to be handed over to the US military for training and testing purposes later this month— Stas Khutor, CEO of F-Drones

Military drones put to the test at Fort Benning

The Ukrainian manufacturer entered the US market via UDD Tech Corp, which represents its products in the United States. In February, this company took part in the “Gauntlet I” tests at Fort Benning, Georgia, which formed the first phase of “Drone Dominance”.

The drones were tested by US service members in practical missions. The assessment covered not only flight performance; manufacturing capacity, a reliable supply chain and the ability to fulfil large orders quickly also counted. After the tests, the F10 system ranked sixth out of 25 participants. As one of the eleven winners of the first phase, UDD Tech Corp received an order for 2,000 drones and at the same time qualified for the next phase of the programme.

“Drone Dominance” has a volume of 1 billion dollars (around 870 million euros) and is intended to procure small, lethal drones over the next two years. More than 200,000 units are planned by 2027, which are to be capable of carrying out lethal strikes even under the harshest combat conditions. All drones currently being tested are controlled by military operators; they are assessed on their ability to complete a range of mission scenarios.