Collaboration on the Production of the Aarok Combat Drone by Antonov and Turgis & Gaillard

A new collaboration has been announced between the Ukrainian aerospace company Antonov and the French defense firm Turgis & Gaillard on developing an advanced combat drone. Dubbed the Aarok, this unmanned aerial vehicle aims to provide cutting-edge capabilities to meet 21st century warfare demands.

The two companies plan to combine their expertise to build the Aarok from the ground up as a highly capable UCAV. Featuring a stealthy, flying wing design, the drone will be powered by two turbofan engines granting a range of over 2500 nautical miles. It is engineered for survivability in contested airspace, with redundant flight systems, robust navigation tools, and hardening against electronic warfare.

With a maximum takeoff weight around 5,000 kilograms, the Aarok will have over 24 hours of flight endurance time. It can carry a mix of sensors for intelligence gathering and a 450 kilogram payload for weapons delivery. The onboard systems are designed for autonomous operations, allowing the Aarok to conduct missions such as suppression of enemy air defenses.

Antonov will handle the airframe design, engineering, and manufacturing processes for the Aarok. Turgis & Gaillard is contributing the avionics suite, flight control systems, and advanced data links to network the drone with other assets.

According to officials, the Aarok project draws on the companies’ deep experience with military drones and combat aircraft. It represents an important evolution in unmanned platforms, setting new standards for range, survivability and multirole capabilities. Following successful testing, the two firms aim to offer the Aarok to export customers by 2025.