Wednesday, October 16, French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu announced the first delivery of French-made kamikaze drones to Ukraine in the coming weeks.
Lecornu detailed that the aerial drones for transfer were manufactured by Delair, have successfully passed all performance tests, and will be soon adopted by both the French and Ukrainian Armed Forces, BMFTV reports. The video from the defense minister shows one of these drones in action, visually similar to the DX-11 unmanned aerial system.
Read more: French Company Creates Seaquest S, a Project Inspired by Ukraine's Sea Drones
Succès des essais de la première munition télé opérée - aussi appelée drone kamikaze - française. Reconquête de souveraineté sur ce segment clé pour nos armées, en moins de deux ans.Livraisons à l'Ukraine et à nos forces dans les prochaines semaines. pic.twitter.com/QfewB0gIAm— Sébastien Lecornu (@SebLecornu) October 16, 2024
At this point, Defense Express notes, it's important to understand the broader context around the transfer of French-made kamikaze drones to the Ukrainian forces. To begin with, these will be the first attack UAVs of French production; the French army itself admits that its domestic industries are yet to catch up with modern drone technologies.
Therefore, it should not be surprising that as of now, the French military considers kamikaze drones to be just a "complement to the CAESAR artillery gun," a quote by minister Lecornu, as delivered by BMFTV.
Given that the French view the role of kamikaze drones in modern warfare as supplementary, the capabilities of these systems are in accordance with this vision. To put it simply, they are not quite impressive at all.
For example, there were earlier reports that France was making its kamikaze UAVs based on Delair's UX11 mapping drone. The reference is an aerial vehicle mere 1.1 meters in wingspan, the total weight is 1.5 kilograms. Making an effective attack drone with a proper firepower would require a radical redesign; there's no information yet if any such adjustments have been made.
Another basis for a kamikaze drone is the Delair DT46, an aircraft with a takeoff weight of 25 kg, 5 kilograms of payload capacity. One more model worth mentioning here is the DT26 reconnaissance UAV with a launch weight 17 kg and operational range 30–50 km.
Another fact speaking volumes of French approach to drone development is that despite the increased interest in kamikaze drones production announced by Paris officials in April 2024, the current defense plans of France provide for procurement of only 1,800 kamikaze drones for its armed forces by 2030. Meanwhile, Ukraine aims to produce 1 million FPV drones by the end of 2024.
Read more: Officially: Ukraine Wil Get 49 M1 Abrams Tanks From Australia
