BERLIN: The German government plans to order strike drones worth 536 million euros ($638 million) from German startups Helsing and Stark Defense, part of a rearmament push after Russia’s attack on Ukraine.
The contracts for loitering munitions — drones that hover over a potential strike area before flying into targets — are part of a larger framework deal worth 4.3 billion euros.
The contracts, outlined in documents seen by Reuters, are widely expected to be rubber-stamped by the lower house of parliament’s budget committee. They were first reported by Spiegel magazine.
The drones are initially intended to support Germany’s 45th Tank Brigade, which is deployed in Lithuania.
According to the documents, the contracts with the two companies are to have a term of seven years. The initial batch is scheduled to be delivered by early 2027.
