While Silicon Valley’s tech giants often started in garages, Ukraine’s burgeoning defense industry frequently found its beginnings in basements. These clandestine workshops, initially piecing together drones from readily available components, operated discreetly to evade Russian missile attacks.
These once small-scale, volunteer-driven efforts are now evolving into significant defense corporations, a transformation actively encouraged by President Volodymyr Zelensky’s government to accelerate innovation. Among these rapidly expanding companies, one stands out dramatically, attracting both ardent supporters and vocal critics: Fire Point, an emerging drone-manufacturing titan.
Remarkably, at the outset of the full-scale conflict in February 2022, the enterprise that would become Fire Point was merely a casting agency for film and television productions, according to official Ukrainian government records. Its registered legal owner, Yehor Skalyha, also serves as the CEO of At Point, a company specializing in scouting film locations. Furthermore, Fire Point’s chief technology officer, Iryna Terekh, previously managed a business focused on producing concrete outdoor furniture.
Today, Fire Point stands as one of the Ukrainian military’s primary contractors, boasting contracts worth an impressive $1 billion this year, as confirmed by its executives. Operating from approximately 30 undisclosed locations across Ukraine, the company is mass-producing long-range exploding drones crafted from surprisingly affordable materials like Styrofoam, plywood, plastic, and even a type of carbon fiber typically used in racing bicycles.
These drones are playing a crucial role in a significant campaign targeting Russian oil refineries. The objective is to inflict economic damage on Russia and provide Ukraine with a stronger hand in future peace negotiations. Fire Point also reports an increase in the production of the Flamingo, a larger, longer-range weapon that officials hope will significantly enhance Ukraine’s capacity to strike deep within Russian territory.
However, as Fire Point rapidly ascends to become a national aerospace champion, it has faced persistent allegations of leveraging connections to secure lucrative contracts. Its executives have publicly acknowledged being questioned as part of an ongoing anticorruption investigation.
A substantial portion of Ukraine’s military expenditure remains shrouded in wartime secrecy, with billions of dollars directed toward domestic arms manufacturers. This shift is part of Kyiv’s strategy to reduce its reliance on international aid. Given Ukraine’s history of corruption within defense procurement, analysts and watchdog groups have voiced concerns regarding the transparency and fairness of the government’s military contracting process and the distribution of profits.
Fire Point’s origins trace back to the same Ukrainian film and television industry where Mr. Zelensky, a former comedian, worked before his 2019 presidential election. The film scouting company owned by Fire Point’s founder was even credited for location work on ‘Eight Best Dates,’ a 2016 romantic comedy that starred Mr. Zelensky. The company has also contributed to dozens of other productions unrelated to the president’s previous career in entertainment.
The Kyiv Independent newspaper reported in August that Ukraine’s National Anticorruption Agency was scrutinizing potential links between Fire Point and Timur Mindich, a businessman who co-owns a television studio launched by Mr. Zelensky.
The report indicated that the agency was investigating whether Mr. Mindich was covertly benefiting from Fire Point’s profits as an undisclosed owner. Fire Point, for its part, stated that Mr. Mindich had expressed interest in acquiring company stock, but the owners declined the offer.
Fire Point executives have confirmed their cooperation with the anticorruption inquiry, asserting that the investigation primarily targets government officials rather than their company directly. A spokesperson for the anticorruption agency declined to comment on the matter.
Beyond the corruption allegations, Fire Point has also been criticized for allegedly receiving preferential treatment despite initial quality control issues with its drones. Critics suggest these issues rendered its products less effective than alternatives in bypassing Russian air defenses.
The Public Anticorruption Council, an independent body monitoring defense procurement, has formally requested a parliamentary investigation into the reported problems concerning quality and pricing.
Fire Point maintains that its early quality issues have since been resolved. The company asserts that its primary drone, the FP-1, is now consistently destroying Russian refining infrastructure, igniting fires, and causing significant disruption as intended. This assertion, however, has not been independently verified.
Despite the controversies surrounding Ukraine’s military contracting, drone manufacturers like Fire Point are widely celebrated as national heroes. The nation’s rapid adoption of drones, often built with readily available commercial components, has been instrumental in leveling the playing field against Russia’s considerably larger army, fundamentally altering military analysts’ perceptions of future warfare.
As Ukraine’s once patriotically driven drone workshops rapidly transition into commercial entities, they are attracting significant interest from potential investors and Western joint venture partners. This month, Norway and Ukraine jointly announced a 20 million euro (approximately $23 million) fund specifically for angel investments in both Norwegian and Ukrainian drone startups.
“Nobody in the world has so much experience in unmanned missions,” stated Oleksandr Kamyshin, an adviser to Mr. Zelensky on strategic industries, highlighting Ukraine’s unparalleled expertise in drone warfare. He emphasized the importance of Ukraine’s burgeoning industry forming joint ventures with Western defense contractors, adding, “These drones are something you need in Europe and the United States.”
Ukraine’s Ministry of Strategic Industries reports a remarkable surge, with 425 new arms manufacturing companies established between 2022 and 2024. A separate assessment by Brave 1, a Ministry of Digital Transformation initiative promoting military innovation, estimates that over 2,000 Ukrainian companies are now involved in designing or producing weapons.
In the crucial sector of long-range strike drones alone—the specialized type produced by Fire Point—Ukraine boasts more than 20 competing companies, according to Ihor Fedirko, director of the Council of Defense Industries, a leading trade group.
Fire Point’s FP-1 drone is designed to resemble a miniature aircraft. It launches with a rocket-assisted boost and is powered by a two-stroke engine, similar to those found in chain saws. This drone can travel approximately 850 miles and carries a 130-pound warhead. Despite being constructed from inexpensive materials, the FP-1 possesses the capability to strike targets across a significant portion of western Russia.
Ukraine’s strategy for long-range drones mirrors an approach initially pioneered by Russia, which utilized low-cost, Iranian-designed models. This tactical and business model emphasizes volume. Most drones are expected to be intercepted, necessitating low production costs. However, the ones that successfully penetrate defenses only need to function once to achieve their objective.
Fire Point asserts that its drones are currently responsible for 60 percent of Ukraine’s attacks within Russia. The Ukrainian military’s sustained drone strikes have subjected Russia, a nation long proud of its Cold War-era air defenses, to daily bombardments.
This year, Fire Point’s contracts account for roughly 10 percent of Ukraine’s total defense procurement spending. These government funds were allocated despite Fire Point bypassing a legally mandated price negotiation during the contracting process, as highlighted by a government audit.
Procurement officers had previously estimated, based on an analysis of parts and labor costs, that the FP-1 drone could be manufactured more affordably than Fire Point’s December 2024 asking price of approximately $58,000 per unit.
Auditors discovered that this assessment should have triggered a negotiation by Ukraine’s Defense Procurement Agency, but no such negotiation occurred. As a result, contracts were awarded for approximately $16.7 million more than the lower-cost production option for these drones.
In interviews, company executives defended their pricing, stating that their drones were already priced at the absolute minimum for weapons capable of replicating the capabilities of cruise missiles, which typically cost over $1 million each.
Major Yurii Kasyanov, a former drone unit commander, shared in an interview that Fire Point secured contracts despite documented design flaws, while his own drone model, named the Spear, was overlooked.
He recounted that his drone was rejected even after he demonstrated its jamming-proof guidance system by successfully detonating two drones in 2023 mere yards from the flag flying over the Kremlin in Moscow.
Major Kasyanov further revealed that he had served as a witness in the anticorruption investigation pertaining to Fire Point. Subsequently, he stated, his drone unit within the military was disbanded.
Addressing the quality concerns, Iryna Terekh, 33, Fire Point’s chief technology officer, argued that drone manufacturing should be considered a nascent industry, one that, for economic viability, must sometimes deviate from traditional aircraft manufacturing quality standards.
In addition to the FP-1 drone, Fire Point is reportedly scaling up production of the Flamingo, a larger and heavier aircraft. This drone features a jet engine, an impressive range of approximately 1,800 miles, and carries a one-ton warhead. David H. Petraeus, a former Army general and C.I.A. director, has lauded the Flamingo as a potential “game changer” in the ongoing conflict.
However, the Flamingo’s actual effectiveness has yet to be thoroughly tested on a large scale. Another intriguing aspect is the mystery behind its unusual name.
Ms. Terekh explained that engineers had, in fact, painted one prototype pink, which inadvertently led to its distinctive name. The vibrant color was initially chosen to aid in locating debris following a test firing, and the company had simply run out of red paint, she stated.
A different, more anecdotal account suggests the pink coloring was an accidental oversight, leading engineers to quip: “What’s the worst that can happen if a woman is in charge of a defense company? The weapons will be pink.”