UK and Ukraine to Jointly Produce 2,000 Interceptor Drones a Month to Counter Shahed Swarms

The United Kingdom and Ukraine have agreed to jointly produce interceptor drones intended to counter the swarms of Shahed-type attack drones used against Ukrainian infrastructure, with initial output estimated at about 2,000 units per month. Bloomberg reported the planned joint production on October 10.

British officials described the initiative as a rapid scale-up of a Ukrainian-designed small interceptor drone that has shown operational success against one-way Shahed attack UAVs.

UK Defense Secretary John Healey said the interceptor has been “highly effective” against Shahed-type one-way attack drones. The UK government framed the arrangement as both a capability boost for Ukraine and an industrial partnership to sustain production and jobs. 

Luke Pollard, Britain’s Defense Readiness and Industry Minister, cited by Kyiv Independent reporters said that production will be deliberately aimed at supplying Ukraine and gave a target figure for monthly output: “Very shortly, we’ll be producing around 2,000 drones a month, deliberately shipping all of them to Ukraine so they can be used to intercept Russian drones.” 

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Kyiv Independent reports the move responds to a surge in Russian drone activity, including thousands of Shahed-type launches recorded in recent weeks. 

The plan builds on the September technology-sharing agreement announced at DSEI in London and on existing UK commitments to scale up Ukraine’s defensive industrial base. UK officials and industry partners say the project will combine Ukrainian intellectual property with UK manufacturing capacity to reach high monthly output within months. 

Earlier UK-Ukraine industrial cooperation announcements also included private investment in facilities linked to drone production and support, with one report noting a $271 million investment by a Ukrainian manufacturer in UK facilities. 

The Octopus drones production goal is presented as a cost-effective supplement to layered air defense, intended to reduce reliance on scarce and expensive missile interceptors by deploying large numbers of lower-cost, purpose-built interceptor drones. Reuters and industry reporting say the joint effort targets industrial scale-up to meet urgent operational demand. 

Earlier, it was reported that Project OCTOPUS is an air-defense interceptor drone designed in Ukraine with UK technical support, and mass production in the UK aims to deliver thousands per month to Ukraine as a cost-effective counter to attack drones.

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