Drones worth €36 million to be purchased for Lithuanian army

5 July, 2024 Drones by Threod Systems. Photo from the company's website The Lithuanian Ministry of National Defence has decided to purchase various types of drones for EUR36 million.

The Defence Materiel Agency under the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defence spoke about the purchase of drones from local and Latvian manufacturers. In particular, it regards small reconnaissance drones by the Latvian company Edge Autonomy and reconnaissance mini-drones by the Estonian company Threod Systems, as well as Lithuanian quadcopters by UAB Deftools. The vast majority of the drones are to be delivered this fall, and the rest - in early 2025.

According to the Ministry of National Defense, they are being purchased as a matter of urgency to enhance the potential of the drones and integrate them into the Lithuanian Armed Forces as soon as possible.

Quadcopter. Photo credits: Lithuanian Ministry of National Defence

"By 2030, about EUR200 million will be allocated for the purchase of all types of unmanned aerial systems. On average, it is planned to spend EUR30 million per year," the press release says.

In recent years, the Lithuanian defense industry has increased its capacity to produce various drones. In May, nearly 30 companies and 100 company representatives presented their products at the Lithuanian exhibition Drone Day 2024. This is not the first time Lithuania has purchased Latvian and Estonian drones.

In 2022, Lithuania purchased EOS C VTOL drones by the Estonian company Threod Systems for Ukraine.

EOS C VTOL drone by Threod Systems

The EOS C VTOL is a high-performance electric mini-UAV for vertical takeoff and landing. Penguine MK2 drones by Latvian Edge Autonomy were purchased for Ukraine through the United24 platform.

Penguin MK2 drone by Edge Autonomy

This drone by Edge Autonomy has an operating time of up to 25 hours (depending on the payload) and a line-of-sight range of 180 km.