A leading drone manufacturer was a casting agency for Zelensky’s projects before the war – NYT

The leading drone manufacturer in Ukraine, Fire Point, was a casting agency for Volodymyr Zelensky’s projects before the war.

This was reported by the American newspaper The New York Times.

According to the publication, its officially registered owner, Yehor Skalyha, is still the executive director of another company, At Point, which specializes in finding filming locations for movies.

The newspaper writes that the company headed by the owner of Fire Point was credited in the 2016 romantic comedy “8 Best Dates” starring Zelensky.

Now, Fire Point is one of the largest contractors for the Ukrainian army, with contracts worth one billion dollars this year, according to its executives.

The company states that it is also expanding production of long-range weapons called Flamingo, which officials hope will strengthen Ukraine’s ability to strike deep inside Russian territory.

Fire Point’s contracts this year account for about 10% of Ukraine’s defense procurement spending. According to a government audit, the government allocates these funds despite Fire Point having avoided the price negotiations required by law when signing contracts.

“Based on the cost of parts and labor, experts estimated that Fire Point’s FP-1 drone could be produced more cheaply than its December 2024 price of about $58,000 per unit. This estimate should have led to negotiations by Ukraine’s Defense Procurement Agency, but that did not happen, auditors found. Without such negotiations, the contracts were concluded at a total of $16.7 million above the lowest possible production cost,” the newspaper writes.

At the same time, the company faces accusations of using connections to obtain contracts, and its executives say they have been questioned as part of an anti-corruption investigation.

In August, media reported that the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) is investigating links between Fire Point and businessman Tymur Mindich, who is a co-owner of the television studio founded by Zelensky.

The newspaper reported that the agency is looking into whether Mindich received Fire Point’s revenues as an undisclosed owner. Fire Point said that Mindich had asked to buy shares in the company, but the owners refused to sell them.

The company is also accused of receiving preferential treatment from authorities despite quality issues with its drones, which critics say make them less effective at overcoming Russian air defenses than other Ukrainian models.

The Public Anti-Corruption Council, an independent group monitoring defense procurement, has called on the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) to investigate Fire Point’s alleged problems with quality and pricing.

Major Yuriy Kasyanov of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, a former drone unit commander, said in an interview that Fire Point won contracts despite design flaws, while the model he developed, called Spear, was overlooked.

According to him, his drone was ignored despite demonstrating a guidance system resistant to interference, having detonated two drones within a few yards of the Russian flag flying over the Kremlin in Moscow.

Kasyanov said he testified as a witness in an anti-corruption investigation related to Fire Point, and afterward, his unit was disbanded by command.