Germany Wants 12,000 Kamikaze Drones

The German government sees military drone technology as so important that it is funding even failed manufacturers to try to gain an advantage in the drone arms race.

On Friday, Bild reported that the German Defense Ministry had awarded three companies contracts worth $1 billion to produce 12,000 kamikaze drones, pending approval by the legislature.

• A secret drone test reportedly took place at the end of October at a German military base in Münster. Bild and the Financial Times reported that Helsing, a Munich-based start-up, hit its targets 17 times; Stark, a Berlin start-up, failed both of its strike attempts; and Rheinmetall, a defense giant but a newcomer to drone production, did not show up for the test.
• Helsing succeeded in a separate testing phase with the British Army in Kenya, while Stark failed. But Stark has prominent backers, such as tech billionaire Peter Thiel, and continues to enjoy the trust of the German government.
• Helsing was once where Stark is today. After facing strong criticism for exaggerating its HF-1 drone’s abilities to draw investors, it built the HX-2, which is now proving its worth. The controversial strategy is, promise what you can’t deliver in order to receive the funds to deliver.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced earlier this month that Germany will invest more than $11 billion in drones in the coming years. Such investments will drive innovation in these German start-ups. This trend could transform the battlefield of the future, as Mr. Flurry noted in “Germany Is Arming for World War III.”