The company Ukrainian Defense Drones (UDD), which is the U.S. representative office of the Ukrainian manufacturer F-Drones, is opening its first major assembly and production center in the United States. The facility will be located in northwestern Ohio, and the total investment in the project will amount to $18.4 million.
This was reported in an official statement by U.S. Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur. It is noted that the decision to deploy production capacity was made after the Ukrainian company signed its first contract with the U.S. Department of Defense.
"An all-hands-on deck approach won the day after our sustained engagement to attract one of the leading manufacturers of unmanned systems, Ukrainian Defense Drones (UDD)—the US arm of Ukraine's F-Drones—to start assembly in Northwest Ohio. UDD is on the cutting edge of drone technology and defense innovation, and its systems are battle-tested on the frontlines of Liberty defending the free people of Ukraine from Dictator Vladimir Putin's merciless invasion," said Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus.
The new factory in Ohio will create at least 300 jobs. The production site will meet the needs of the United States and its allies in FPV drones and unmanned systems, and will also serve as a base for training, testing, and integrating hardware and software.
F-Drones CEO Stas Khutor emphasized that the company has become the first Ukrainian manufacturer to receive permission from the Ukrainian government to export unmanned systems for the U.S. military.
“Becoming the first Ukrainian drone manufacturer authorized by the Government of Ukraine to export drone systems to the US military is a historic milestone, and the next step is to share the technology to produce these drones on American soil. We’re proud to support the vision behind the emerging US–Ukraine Drone Deal and to help strengthen the security and technological leadership of both our nations. Ukraine did more than adapt to drone warfare — it helped invent it. We were the first in the world to turn drones into a tool of national defense, to refine them under fire into something close to perfection, and to make them the backbone of our ability to hold the line against a far larger aggressor. The lessons learned here are now shaping the future of modern warfare. At F-Drones, we believe these hard-won capabilities should strengthen not just Ukraine but the entire free world — our mission is simple: Making the Free World Unbreakable,” he said.
The entry of the Ukrainian developer into the U.S. market became possible thanks to the U.S. Department of Defense program Drone Dominance. This is a $1 billion initiative aimed at accelerating the development of the industrial base and rapidly supplying combat units with low-cost drones at scale. As part of the program’s first phase, UDD placed sixth, competing against the combat-proven F10 platform, and received a government contract to supply 2,000 FPV drones.
