Europe’s Drone Race: Ukraine’s Mass Production Meets Germany’s Push to Modernize the Bundeswehr

Ukrainian media report that the country is now producing roughly 500,000 drones each month, a figure that has nearly doubled within a year. Companies such as Buntar Aerospace have added remote-control capabilities to their Buntar Copilot software, allowing reconnaissance missions to be conducted from hundreds or thousands of kilometres away while the launch crew retreats to safety. The firm built this functionality directly into its mission-planning platform rather than using third-party remote-desktop tools.

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Kaban Robotics adapts existing vehicles—e.g., the U.S. HMMWV—into remotely operated platforms. New features are often implemented within minutes after frontline feedback, such as automatic exterior-light shutdown when communication is lost or a one-button switch to thermal imaging for night operations.

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Germany is scaling up its own drone output. The Bundestag’s budget committee recently approved, with conditions, the delivery of thousands of inexpensive “kamikaze” drones for the Bundeswehr. In Bavaria, manufacturers including Quantum Systems, Helsing, ARX and Airlogix have begun mass production of more than 5,000 long-range combat drones destined for Ukraine. A separate production facility is planned for eastern Germany.

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Parliamentary commissioner for the armed forces Henning Otte has criticised the Bundeswehr for lagging far behind in acquiring modern unmanned systems and for relying on “non-military bureaucracy.” Security expert Dr Frank Sauer argues that technology is the lesser problem; Germany can close the gap, though higher per-drone prices make German products less popular in Ukraine.

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Lieutenant General Dr Christian Freuding emphasizes that basic training now includes an introductory drone-operation course, insisting that every soldier become a drone reconnaissance operator or counter-drone specialist. At the “Freedom Shield I” exercise in Lithuania, soldiers flew drones themselves and built improvised drone-cages for protection. Tank commander Kevin of Augustdorf’s Tank Battalion 203 described his first drone flight as taking only three minutes to learn.

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German officials acknowledge that procurement speed and bureaucratic hurdles, rather than technology scarcity, impede modernization. The Bundeswehr’s leadership stresses the need to internalise the altered battlefield geometry and develop new tactics alongside organizational reforms.

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• “The main goal is to ensure the safety of experienced crews. Once the drone is airborne, the pilot can carry out the mission from a safe location while the launch team quickly leaves the area,” — Bohdan Sas, one of Buntar's founders

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• “Everyone must learn it, everyone must be able to do it,” — General Dr Christian Freuding

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