U.S. Army signs $10.64 million deal with Skyeton for Ukrainian Raybird drones

The Defense Department announced that the U.S. Army has granted Skyeton Inc., the American subsidiary of the Ukrainian drone maker, a firm-fixed-price contract worth $10.64 million for Raybird reconnaissance unmanned aerial systems and related services. Raybird is a long-range, fixed-wing drone capable of 24-hour endurance and a 2,500-kilometre range, and Skyeton reports it has accumulated over 350,000 combat hours since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, helping to destroy billions of dollars of Russian equipment.

The contract does not specify the quantity of drones, and work locations and funding will be set with each order, with completion targeted for Dec. 15, 2026. Skyeton’s facilities have been targeted before, including a May 14 attack on its Kyiv office and an August arson plot against a Slovak factory, which the company says did not disrupt production. The purchase aligns with U.S. efforts to incorporate Ukrainian battlefield innovations after the Army recently dissolved a 600-person drone-warfare unit within the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Ukrainian personnel have also been embedded in U.S. exercises such as Saber Junction in Germany, where American troops employed roughly 1,900 drones.