Germany is preparing to sharply expand its long-range drone fleet, with the Bundeswehr considering the purchase of up to 500 UAVs capable of flying at least 1,000 kilometers. According to Handelsblatt, the German armed forces want the new systems ready for combat use by 2029.
A contract with one of the suppliers could be signed as early as this year. However, the scale of the first order remains unclear. One senior figure in the defense industry expects Germany to buy around 100 drones from a single manufacturer at once. Another Handelsblatt source also anticipates a deal this year, but believes the initial batch may be limited to roughly 10 aircraft for testing by the Bundeswehr.
Several projects are being discussed as possible contenders. One of them involves Germany’s Rheinmetall and the Australian division of the US company Boeing, linked to the MQ-28 Ghost Bat UAV. Another option is the Valkyrie drone project developed by European aircraft manufacturer Airbus together with the US startup Kratos.
Handelsblatt also lists German defense startup Helsing among the potential candidates. The company is working with Hensoldt on the CA-1 unmanned aircraft.