UAC launches production of drones for Ukraine in the Czech Republic

2 July, 2024 Bulava loitering munition. Photo credits: UAC UAC has launched the serial production of Leleka-LR reconnaissance drones and Bulava strike drones exclusively for the Ukrainian army.

This was reported by the Czech publication E15. UAC is a branch of the private Ukrainian company DeViRo, which has been developing and manufacturing military-grade drones since 2014. The company has launched mass production in the Czech city of Kolin and plans to deliver about a hundred reconnaissance and attack drones per year.

"Currently, the delivery of unmanned vehicles from the Czech Republic to Ukraine is an absolute priority. In the future, we intend to gain a decisive share of the Central European market in the medium-sized drone category and supply products to the armed forces of NATO and other countries," explains Stefan Fule of UAC's management. Currently, the company's facilities in Kolin employ about 80 people, mostly Ukrainians.

Only a fifth of the total staff are Czechs. The company says that as it scales up production, UAC will expand its workforce. "In November, we started trial operation, and in April, we started mass production.

This is literally a military production, our exclusive customer is the Ukrainian army," says Pavel Bulant, the company's executive director.

Drone production

The production of drones begins with the manufacture of precision electronics. Motherboards and entire electronic units are assembled entirely at the company's facilities by specialists, who also assemble optical modules. Other operations include injection molding, 3D printing, and CNC machining of the fuselages and wings of future drones.

"We are almost completely autonomous, with a minimum of subcontractors. We buy electric motors and internal combustion engines for drones from them, for example," Bulant adds. The production ends in a large hall with dozens of green plastic shipping containers where disassembled Leleka-LR reconnaissance drones and Bulava strike drones are stored.

Photo credits: UAC

Militarnyi provided a detailed report on the characteristics of the Leleka-LR reconnaissance drones.

Additionally, some characteristics and capabilities of the Bulava attack drones were first revealed at the Eurosatory 2024 exhibition this year.