Ukraine prepares two low-cost domestic missiles for combat use against jet-powered Geran drones

Two Ukrainian teams are preparing domestically developed surface-to-air missiles for combat use against Russian jet-powered drones.

Source: Andrii Hrytseniuk, head of the Ukrainian defence-tech cluster Brave1, in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda

Details: "They are cheap and easy to manufacture. One of the requirements was to keep the cost of a missile below US$20,000," Hrytseniuk said.

The ambition of these projects is underscored by the average market cost of missiles, ranging from hundreds of thousands of dollars per shot for a Stinger to half a million dollars for an AIM-9X missile used by F-16 fighter jets.

Even using two or three such missiles against a Russian long-range drone is expected to be cost-effective relative to the value of the target. Various estimates put the cost of a standard Geran at around US$70,000, while its jet-powered version may cost tens of thousands of dollars more.

Hrytseniuk said Brave1 began funding the development of surface-to-air missiles in 2024. It took two years to produce the first prototypes. A total of 10 Ukrainian teams are working on such missiles.

Background: In May, it was reported that Ukraine is developing low-cost interceptor missiles and had already tested some solutions. Then-defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov said there were plans to scale up their production dozens of times.

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