Ukraine's Defence Procurement Agency names FPV suppliers via new online marketplace

An FPV UAS with electric motor made by Ukrainian firm General Cherry. (Ukraine's Ministry of Defence)

Ukraine's Defence Procurement Agency (DPA) has revealed five unmanned aircraft system (UAS) manufacturers who delivered orders of first-person view (FPV) UASs via the new online DOT-Chain Defence weapons marketplace, a representative from the agency confirmed to Janes on 15 August.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) operating in the Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, and Kherson regions received 1,000 UASs that were ordered through the marketplace, according to a 14 August DPA press release.

Some of the Ukrainian manufacturers who produced the FPV UASs are Escadrone, General Cherry, Gryph Dron, TAF Drones, and Vyriy Drone, the DPA representative added.

The DOT-Chain Defence weapons marketplace currently offers 138 FPV or bomber UAS models from 15 Ukrainian manufacturers, although the representative did not reveal their names.

The overall procurement process took less than two weeks, according to the DPA, with the first few orders placed on 31 July via the digital platform. Twelve AFU brigades “engaged in the most intense combat” are currently using the marketplace, it added.

The main aim of DOT-Chain Defence is to streamline the delivery of various equipment, including for unmanned operations, electronic warfare (EW), signals intelligence (SIGINT), and ammunition. If approved for procurement on the platform, AFU units are able to select the types of UASs needed and their quantity before placing an order and using Ukraine's state funds to pay for the hardware.

For more information, please see Update: Ukraine's Brave1 launches ‘Amazon-style' marketplace for purchasing defence equipment .