Germany will begin production of Merops interceptor systems that have already been used to shoot down thousands of drones in Ukraine.
Mass production will become possible under an agreement between the American company Perennial Autonomy, developer of the Merops system, and Munich-based drone manufacturer Twentyfour Industries, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Production is planned near Munich to expand manufacturing capacity for anti-drone systems in Europe.
According to Twentyfour Industries, the system has already helped destroy more than 4,000 Russian drones in Ukraine.
The company demonstrated the interceptor at the Tech Show exhibition in Erding, Germany.
“We are contributing to the realization of Germany’s goal of combining combat-proven technologies with the country’s new industrial base and providing the Bundeswehr and its partners,” Twentyfour Industries stated.
The drones’ primary task is to neutralize enemy drones by detonating near the target.
The Merops system was largely developed by Ukrainian engineers for Perennial Autonomy, one of whose founders is Eric Schmidt, Defence24 reported.
The system gained combat experience not only in Ukraine. After the start of the US-Israeli war against Iran, it was deployed to the Middle East to protect American bases and infrastructure in Persian Gulf countries. The Polish military also uses Merops interceptor systems.
The system consists of a radar for target detection and AS3 Surveyor interceptor drones with a declared speed of up to 280 km/h and autonomous targeting capability in addition to operator control.
Mass production of drones in Bavaria could significantly reduce their cost.
According to media reports, the price of one Surveyor drone was about $15,000 in March this year. However, for large orders, the cost is expected to decrease, especially after the launch of mass production in Germany.
