Germany is funding 50,000 attack drones for Ukraine, a source familiar with the matter said, in an order that marks one of the biggest known purchases of drones for Kyiv by a Western government, Reuters reports.
Ukraine has relied heavily on a range of unmanned vehicles during the more than four-year-old war against Russia, and it is producing millions of drones annually as Ukrainian forces conduct thousands of drone strikes each day.
The attack drone order involves Shrike first-person-view (FPV) drones made by major Ukrainian manufacturer SkyFall and equipped with software from U.S. defence technology firm Auterion designed to autonomously track and hit moving targets in the final phase of the flight.
Auterion CEO Lorenz Meier confirmed the size of the contract, adding that it was worth about €90 million ($103 million) and was funded by a European country. Meier told Reuters some of the drones had already been delivered to Ukraine's government with the rest due for dispatch this year.
SkyFall confirmed Germany's involvement, but said the company could not comment on the details of the purchase.
Germany's Defence Ministry declined to comment, citing operational security.
Ukraine's Defence Ministry also declined to comment.
