Battlefield math is changing in Ukraine: Kyiv’s drone output surged 2.5-fold in 2025

Ukraine's tech strategy has paid off. The number of FPV drones delivered to its armed forces in 2025 has increased almost 2.5-fold compared to last year, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal has announced.

“The role of unmanned systems on the battlefield is increasing, and therefore the production of innovative tools of war is our top priority,” Shmyhal emphasizes.

Numbers reshaping the front

By the end of 2025, the Ukrainian military is expected to receive 3 million FPV drones, nearly 2.5 times more than last year.

A key point is that the vast majority of these drones are domestically produced, reducing dependence on external suppliers and enabling faster adaptation to battlefield conditions.

Who supplies drones to the AFU, and how

The Defense Procurement Agency (DPA) of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense became the main supplier of FPV drones this year:

• 2.4 million FPV drones delivered directly through the DPA
• Most supplied via direct contracts with Ukrainian manufacturers
• 200,000 UAVs delivered through the DOT-Chain Defence IT system, launched in late July
• This approach significantly reduced bureaucracy and accelerated delivery to combat units.

Not just drones: another technological breakthrough

In addition to aerial drones, deliveries of unmanned ground systems (UGS) surged. In 2025, the AFU received nearly 15,000 UGS, several times more than last year.

These systems perform a wide range of tasks, including:

• logistics and ammunition delivery
• medical evacuation
• reconnaissance
• mine-laying and demining
• patrol missions

Some UGS are equipped with combat modules and are already used in assault and defensive operations.

Shmyhal notes that Ukraine is systematically investing in a technological advantage on the battlefield, focusing not only on quantity but also on adapting equipment to real combat scenarios.

“We continue to work actively to ensure our warriors have a technological edge at the front,” the Ukrainian defense minister concluded.

In December, Ukrainian airborne troops carried out an extremely complex two-stage evacuation of a wounded fighter with a robotic ground system while under constant threat from Russian drones on the Pokrovsk front.

However, ground robots can do far more than evacuate the wounded. They can also recover vehicles and valuable drones that are stranded in the midst of a fire.