Fire Point drones: 12 times more expensive with incomparably worse performance

Ukrainian Armed Forces Major and former drone unit commander Yuriy Kasyanov stated that Fire Point company drones purchased with public funds are 12 times more expensive than more effective unmanned aerial vehicles from other manufacturers.

He made this statement at a session of the Verkhovna Rada’s temporary investigative commission on possible violations of Ukrainian legislation in the field of defense, anti-corruption law, and the observance of human rights and freedoms during martial law.

According to Kasyanov, in 2023 one fixed-wing drone capable of reaching Moscow, developed by his unit, cost approximately $4,500. A Fire Point drone at the same time cost around $55,000.

The serviceman, who holds a relevant engineering degree and has developed around 20 types of unmanned aerial vehicles, pointed to the similarity of the component base of both products. “Our drones and Fire Point’s drones have very similar components. At the same time, some of our electronic components were even more expensive than those of the Fire Point-1,” Kasyanov stated.

In his assessment, practically the only component in the Fire Point samples that was more expensive than in his drones was a German engine costing around $5,000. However, even taking that into account, a Fire Point drone should cost around $10,000, not $55,000.

At the same commission session, Kasyanov reported that over the course of a year, three thousand Fire Point drones were launched toward Moscow, but only one reached its target. In his own unit, seven out of 12 drones from other manufacturers reached Moscow, and three reached the center of the Russian capital.

According to Kasyanov, following these results his unit was disbanded at the insistence of Fire Point, which he described as being close to Vladimir Zelensky’s inner circle.