US Army awards $10.6 million contract for Ukrainian Raybird drones

The U.S. Army has awarded a $10.64 million contract to Skyeton Inc., the American arm of Ukrainian drone maker Skyeton, for Raybird reconnaissance drones and related services, according to a Defense Department statement issued Sept. 18.

The Raybird is a Ukrainian-developed fixed-wing reconnaissance drone designed for long-range missions and extensively used on the battlefield in Ukraine.

The U.S. Defense Department's disclosure said it awarded Skyteton Inc. a firm-fixed-price contract of $10.64 million covering the Raybird unmanned aerial system hardware and services.

The number of systems being purchased was not disclosed. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with completion of the contract expected by Dec. 15, 2026.

According to Skyeton, the drone is capable of remaining airborne for up to 24 hours and can travel as far as 2,500 kilometers (1,550 miles). The company says Raybird systems have logged more than 350,000 combat hours since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion. It also estimates that intelligence gathered using Raybird drones has helped to destroy billions of dollars worth of Russian military equipment.

The company has recently been a target itself. A Russian attack on Kyiv on May 14 destroyed Skyeton's office, though the company said its production had already been dispersed across facilities in Ukraine and abroad, allowing drone deliveries to the military to continue.

In August, Slovak police detained three foreign nationals over an alleged plot to set fire to a Skyeton drone factory in Slovakia. A company representative told the Kyiv Independent that Russian actors had repeatedly attempted to target its production facilities and reputation.

The U.S. purchase comes as Washington assesses how to incorporate lessons from the Ukrainian battlefield, where drone technology has evolved rapidly and changed how the war is fought.

Earlier in September, the U.S. Army ended the specialization of an approximately 600-member drone warfare unit less than a year after it was created within the Europe-based 173rd Airborne Brigade, returning it to a conventional airborne infantry role.

Lawmakers from both parties objected, warning that shutting down the experimental unit could weaken the military's ability to learn from Ukraine's experience.

The Army has continued integrating drones and related tactics elsewhere. Ukrainian personnel recently embedded with U.S. forces during the Saber Junction military exercises in Germany, where American troops used roughly 1,900 drones while practicing maneuvers shaped by what Ukraine has learned.