As of today, Ukrainian drone manufacturer SkyFall has reached an annual production rate of 100,000 Vampires. This information was disclosed by a company representative using the pseudonym Nirmata at the World Defense Show (WDS) 2026, held in Saudi Arabia from February 8 to 12.
Journalists from the Oboronka project by Ukrainska Pravda and Mezha spoke with the SkyFall representative. Based on the announced figures, the company is now producing on average more than 8,300 Vampire bomber drones per month, compared to its previous production rate of 50,000 units per year (over 4,150 per month).
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The company emphasizes that the current version of the Vampire significantly surpasses its initial variants across all performance parameters. Most importantly, SkyFall plans to make the drone fully Ukrainian in terms of its component base by the end of the year.
As of now, a number of Vampire components are already manufactured in Ukraine, and there is a "Vampire non-China" version that contains no Chinese-made parts. At the same time, SkyFall is addressing two key challenges: scaling up mass production and developing its own camera system (a prototype already exists).
The cost of a single drone has also decreased. Initially priced at up to USD 20,000 (depending on configuration), the Vampire now costs more than twice as little — approximately USD 8,500 per unit.
Further significant price reductions will naturally be more difficult to achieve, as SkyFall continues to improve the Vampire bomber. Among other efforts, a dedicated R&D team is developing protective solutions for the drone, including certain features that are expected to become an unwelcome "surprise" for the enemy.
Illustrative video
Today, the Vampire is considered the most popular and one of the most effective bomber drones in Ukraine's Defense Forces. It has won several categories within the Army of Drones program, including recognition as the most effective strike asset, ranking first in enemy personnel elimination and among bomber-class UAVs.
The drone can carry up to 15 kg of payload, has a communications range of 45 km, and reaches speeds of up to 80 km/h.
Previously, Defense Express reported that purchasing large numbers of drones also raises the question of how to deploy them efficiently, which is why the Pentagon is exploring containerized launch systems.
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