Vampire, Shrike, P1-SUN: How SkyFall drones are becoming more Ukrainian — and cheaper

Deftech company SkyFall is one of the largest drone manufacturers in Ukraine, and its Vampire bomber became the most effective weapon on the battlefield last year. Since 2022, its price has fallen by more than half, and now the manufacturer plans to make it entirely Ukrainian.

At the same time, Skyfall is developing Shrike FPV drones and P1-Sun interceptors, which have already shot down 700 “shaheds.” Defender Media recounts the most interesting parts of the Oboronka interview about the evolution of Skyfall products.

Localisation and price of the Vampire drone

At the start of production, the Vampire cost up to $20,000 depending on the configuration. Now the drone costs $8,500. At the same time, a manufacturer representative says the current version surpasses the first in connection, operating range, speed, electronic-warfare resistance, and ease of operation.

Skyfall can produce 100,000 bombers per month and already has a version of the Vampire without Chinese components. By the end of 2026, the Vampire drone will be entirely Ukrainian.

The company currently has localised communication components, antennas, chassis and motors. The drone’s ground control station is also almost completely localised. In addition, Skyfall already has a prototype camera of its own production, which it plans to turn into an MVP in the spring and start mass production by the end of the year. This will further reduce the drone’s cost.

Shrike keeps evolving

Unlike Vampire, the company already offers 100% locally produced Shrike FPV drones. Such versions are not yet mass-produced due to the state and capacity of production facilities.

The price of the drone depends on its size and configuration: the cheapest daytime version costs about $300, while the most expensive night-time and fibre-optic version costs $1,500. The Ukrainian military destroyed a Russian Mi-8 helicopter worth over $10 million using the $500 version.

According to a manufacturer representative, the Shrike can still be improved without increasing its weight.

P1-Sun interceptor drone reaches 700 Shaheds downed

P1-SUN is another Skyfall development designed to shoot down “shaheds,” “gerans,” and similar unmanned aerial vehicles. Initially, the drone could accelerate to 300 km/h, but the developers have already increased this to 450 km/h. In addition, it can climb to an altitude of 5 km. The P1-SUN also has remote control and target tracking capabilities.

In November, the company was already producing thousands of these drones per month, and they have now shot down over a thousand targets. Of these, 700 were “shaheds”. The intercepter costs about $1,000. A Skyfall representative says there is no room for further cost reductions.

Almost a thousand pilots have been trained on the intercepter at the company’s academy. In total, 20,000 people have been trained there over the past two years.