British killer drone start-up wins backing from defence giants
A British company behind a drone that will give Army troops 'an Apache gunship in the boot of their car' has secured backing from one of Europe's biggest defence giants.
Hydra Drones has developed an unmanned aerial vehicle powered by rotors and up to six rocket boosters, making it capable of carrying up to 400 kilograms in weight and matching the firepower of an Apache helicopter when multiple drones are used simultaneously.
The heavy lift capability means it can be fitted out to carry everything from laser-guided Brimstone missiles to heavy machine guns and, one day, potentially injured soldiers.
It takes just minutes to launch and can fire missiles capable of hitting tanks 20 miles away.
A less capable version of the device has already been trialled by the Army. Bosses now want to complete a prototype and were close to winning funding from the Ministry of Defence before spending freezes last year prompted them to search elsewhere.
Hydra has now received an investment – understood to be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds – from Anglo-French-Italian missile manufacturer MBDA, which has also taken a minority shareholding.
MBDA is a joint venture between BAE Systems, Airbus and Leonardo and makes Storm Shadow cruise missiles for the UK, as well as the laser-guided, tank-busting Brimstone missile.
The cash invested in Hydra is in addition to nearly £1m of finance already raised by the company – which includes several former members of the Armed Forces – from friends, family and private individuals.
It will allow Hydra to finish a prototype and push on with further trials this year, probably in September.
The Army has been working with the company since 2021 and promoted its drone at the military sector's flagship Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) exhibition in London in 2023.
Tom O'Connor, managing director of Hydra Drones and a former aircraft technician for the Army, said five Hydra drones would be able to match the firepower of Apache, reducing the need to put human lives in danger.
With a full payload, they should be able to stay airborne for up to 25 minutes, meaning they could be used to safely reinforce frontline troops with significant amounts of ammunition and food supplies.
At the same time, the diesel and electric-powered devices could potentially be paired with manned aircraft for a variety of other missions.
Mr O'Connor said: 'With this small, cheap platform, the Army will be able to deliver whatever it needs to deliver without using the relatively small number of manned aircraft. Instead, those can be freed up for more specialist tasks.
'It is semi-attritable – so it will not cost crazy money.'
The drone is designed to be 'modular', meaning its power can be easily scaled up or down using different numbers of attachable jets, and troops can pack it away easily when moving around.
MBDA's investment in Hydra comes as defence companies are investing in heavy-lift drones as cheaper alternatives to helicopters for militaries around the world.
The large number of helicopter missions currently move payloads of a few hundred kilograms or less, meaning there is huge potential for drones to become the workhorses for this kind of logistics.
BAE Systems last year invested in Malloy Aeronautics, another British company developing a heavy-lift drone.
The company's T-650, which can transport payloads of up to 300kg, has been dubbed a 'Land Rover in the sky' and can also use a range of attachments.
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