Ukrainian Startup Fire Point Pioneers Long-Range Missile and Drone Production

Mass Production of Long-Range Missiles

The Ukrainian company Fire Point is currently manufacturing approximately 100 long-range Flamingo cruise missiles each month, according to chief executive Iryna Terekh. These missiles are capable of hitting targets hundreds of miles inside Russia and have been a key component in Ukraine's deep-strike strategy. The Flamingo missile can carry 1,150kg of explosive, enough to penetrate concrete walls, making it an effective weapon against hardened military targets. In June, for instance, the Flamingo missiles were used to attack a Russian military components factory at Cheboksary, more than 600 miles from Kharkiv, in Ukraine's northeast. Their actual flight distance, Terekh said, was among 'the longest recorded in the history of cruise missile missions,' due to the complexity of the flight path.

Drone Production at Scale

In addition to the long-range missiles, Fire Point is producing FP-1 and FP-2 fixed-wing drones. Terekh mentioned that thousands of these fixed-wing drones are being manufactured daily, making them a vital part of Ukraine's military operations. The FP-1 drones in particular are used to attack less well-defended Russian oil refineries in a campaign that has cut their production by 20%. This has led to long queues at petrol pumps across Russia. These drones cost between $55,000 and $75,000 each.

Growth and Impact

Fire Point has seen significant growth over the past few years. The startup now operates from 83 factories within Ukraine and another in Denmark, employing more than 6,000 people. This expansion demonstrates the rapid maturing of Ukraine's homegrown defence industry.

Development of New Systems

In its ongoing development efforts, Fire Point is working on Ukraine's first ballistic missiles. Terekh hopes these will be launched by the end of the year and forms part of an international initiative aimed at creating a new air defence system to complement existing Patriot systems.

Significance of the War Effort

The Ukrainian war effort has spurred rapid modernization within the country. Iryna Terekh, who joined Fire Point in 2023 when it had just 18 employees, emphasized that Ukraine must now focus on exporting high-value products.

‘Ukraine, in a postwar economy, will need to be an exporter of things with a high additional added value. We do not want to be like a breadbasket any more for the world,’ Terekh stated. For now, however, the demands of the war mean that Fire Point’s weapons are primarily intended for domestic use.

Fire Point is largely owned by its founder, businessman Denys Shtilerman. Though Shtilerman held talks about selling a stake to Timur Mindich, a friend and former business associate of the president, Volodymr Zelenskyy, accused last year of running an energy corruption scheme, the founder says no deal went through.

What we’re seeing now is the result of several years of effort by the Ukrainian side,” said Ben Hodges, a former general who commanded the US army in Europe. 'They can not only reach deep inside Russia with precision and get past Russian air defences, their weapons also carry a payload big enough to achieve effect.' The result is an evolution in the long-running war, where Ukraine is closing in on Russia’s ability to conduct deadly long-range attacks.

Each month Russia produces up to 70 air-launched Kh-101 cruise missiles, 25 sea-launched Kalibrs, according to Ukrainian estimates, plus a further 60 Iskander M ballistic missiles. Fire Point is also developing Ukraine’s first ballistic missiles, which Terekh hopes will be first launched by the end of the year. A variant of the short-range FP-7, meanwhile, will form the basis of the separate Freyja initiative, an international effort aimed at creating an alternative air defence system to the US Patriot, involving Ukraine and nine other European countries.

Fire Point will make the launchers and interceptors, with a target cost of $1m per interceptor. “We adore Patriot,” Terekh said, but added that global manufacturing is nowhere near the current level of demand. Only Patriot systems are able to stop Russian ballistic missiles hitting Kyiv and elsewhere, but Ukraine’s stocks are out. “The whole Pac-3 missile production, the worldwide production rate is around 600-700 missiles per year; and this is exactly the amount of Patriot missiles that were consumed in the Middle East in two weeks,” she added. It is now hoped the technology can be first tested by July next year.

Fire Point is largely owned by its founder, businessman Denys Shtilerman. Though Shtilerman held talks about selling a stake to Timur Mindich, a friend and former business associate of the president, Volodymr Zelenskyy, accused last year of running an energy corruption scheme, the founder says no deal went through.

Source: The Guardian