The U.S. is still significantly behind Ukraine in the production of combat drones, as it is only in the early stages of developing its own drone industry.
This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing Reuters.
Travis Metz, deputy director and chief operating officer of the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit, which is responsible for the development of the U.S. drone industry, acknowledged that current production volumes in the U.S. account for only a small fraction of Ukraine’s. At the same time, Washington has already tightened requirements for the production of military drones, prioritizing the use of U.S.-made components.
According to Metz, Ukraine will produce between six and seven million small FPV strike drones this year, or approximately 500,000 per month.
By comparison, under the U.S. “Drone Dominance” program, valued at $1.1 billion, plans are in place to order just under 200,000 drones by February.
“It is much more difficult to go from zero to 200,000 than to increase production volumes once a country already has the necessary capacity,” he noted.
Why the U.S. Cannot Rapidly Scale Up Production
At the same time, the Pentagon has tightened its requirements for military drone manufacturers. Under the new rules, they must be produced using American…
