{"id":100190,"date":"2026-09-02T12:03:46","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T09:03:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/?p=100190"},"modified":"2026-09-02T13:14:00","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T10:14:00","slug":"firebolt-engineering-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/09\/firebolt-engineering-story\/","title":{"rendered":"20 Ukrainian companies are working on jet-powered interceptor drones. Firebolt Engineering is among them"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In July, Defender reported on the jet-powered Griffen interceptor drone<\/a>, which downed its first Shahed. The interceptor was developed by Ukrainian-British company Firebolt Engineering, which raised investment from British fund Grenadyr.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team can currently produce 30 Griffens a month and is already preparing to expand its product line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defender Media spoke to the company’s CEO and its investor, and reports in more detail on the emergence of Firebolt Engineering, its products, and Ukrainian-British cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The company’s origins and investment from a British fund<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Firebolt Engineering was born out of another project \u2013 Technary<\/a>. This is an Odesa-based design bureau founded by Andriy Kosyak, Hennadiy Suldin, Viktor Rekun, Oleksandr Tumanovsky and Yevheniy Lyashan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technary’s product line includes training simulators for military personnel and the ‘ePPO’ app for reporting aerial targets. About a year ago, the team took on the development of its own interceptor drone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After testing a multicopter version, the developers switched to a fixed-wing version due to better energy efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, the development team connected with Grenadyr<\/a> through the Defence Builder accelerator. The British were specifically looking for a product to invest in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read more:<\/strong> British platform Grenadyr has invested in five Ukrainian defence tech startups. Defender is telling its story for the first time<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Grenadyr director Tomasz Wo\u017aniak says that as jet-powered Shaheds scale up, a reliable solution for intercepting them “has never been more important.” The investor believes the Firebolt team is making a significant contribution to finding a solution that will be scalable and affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After receiving funding from Grenadyr, the team created a separate company \u2013 Firebolt Engineering. The head of the interceptor project, Mykola, became its CEO. The speaker asked that his surname not be disclosed. The company has legal entities in Ukraine and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The parties to the deal are not disclosing the amount of investment from Grenadyr, though it is known that the size of the British cheque ranges from $350 thousand to $1.3m.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new structure employs up to 25 people. Production is divided into three units: manufacturing structural components, final assembly and calibration. There is also an R&D department within the structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How the Griffen interceptor works<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Firebolt Engineering’s first product was the Griffen interceptor drone. It has a jet engine, a fixed wing, reaches speeds of over 350 km\/h, can climb to altitudes above 7.5 km, and has a flight range of up to 120 km.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In future, the developers plan to increase speed to 400 km\/h and beyond. The CEO says this can be achieved by improving the drone’s aerodynamic characteristics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The drone’s approximate cost is UAH 370,000\u2013470,000. Production is based in Ukraine, while the partner company Dynamic Propulsion in the United Kingdom is developing a turbojet engine specifically for Firebolt. By the end of summer, the manufacturer expects to receive test samples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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