UK to Purchase FPV Drones as Part of Drone Coalition

23 September, 2024 The Queen of Hornets heavy FPV drone. Freeze frame from the Wild Hornets video The UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) has announced plans worth GBP2 million to procure 300 large FPV drones to meet urgent operational needs within the Drone Capability Coalition.

The UK Defense Journal reported on this. The tender, called the Large First Person View Drone ITT, is seeking "up to 15 batches of first-person view drones, consisting of 20 drones each and associated options, capable of carrying a 5 kg+ payload," the publication reports. The drones are to be purchased by October 14, 2024.

Under the terms of the contract, the FPV drones are to be manufactured within 4 weeks of the agreement. The systems, which include ground control stations and auxiliary equipment, will be shipped to Latvia for rigorous evaluation. The tests will last for three months and should determine the suitability of the drones for future contracts.

In addition, if the tests are successful, it is expected that large-scale production of "up to 500 drones per month" will be possible.

Ukrainian drones in the Drone Coalition

On September 18, it became known that for the first time, Ukrainian companies that manufacture drones will be able to participate in tenders organized by the international drone coalition within the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine reported on this. The series of tenders includes two lots: for producing advanced FPV drones and interceptor drones.

Proposals for FPV drones will be accepted until October 14, and for interceptor drones, they will be accepted until November 11. It is stated that the companies that win the tenders will receive orders to produce drones for further testing and evaluation. In case of successful test results, a large-scale order of FPV drones from the winning companies is planned.

'The aim of this coalition is to ensure the industrial production of FPV drones to create a technological advantage over the enemy in the long term. It is important not only to scale up production in the West but also to support Ukrainian companies capable of producing such equipment. That is why we are engaging domestic producers to participate in tenders for the first time,' Kateryna Chernohorenko, Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine, stated.

In early August, Ukraine announced the first tender for 3,000 FPV drones with artificial intelligence worth UAH 135 million.

Drones must have a range of 20 km or more and be able to capture and aim at a static target at a distance of 300 meters or a moving target at a speed of up to 80 km/h.