AEVEX Aerospace, the U.S. maker whose Phoenix Ghost attack drones have been supplied to Ukraine, said on October 2 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Taiwan's National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST), the military's main research and development arm. At a news conference in Taiwan, it also showed two drones built with local partner Coretronic Intelligent Robotics Corp. (CIRC).
AEVEX, which listed on the New York Stock Exchange in April, is teaming up with a manufacturer that says it delivered 3,000 drones to the government within a year. CIRC says the partners plan to sell the new products worldwide.
Onyx And VANDAL Differ In Range, Payload, And Role
Both aircraft are 3D printed, which AEVEX says allows rapid mass production, and the company says the U.S. military has bought both. Onyx has a combat range of 270 kilometers, endurance above 2.8 hours and a 13.6-kilogram payload. VANDAL, built mainly for surveillance and reconnaissance, reaches 486 kilometers with endurance above 3.5 hours and a 4.5-kilogram payload. Both can serve as kamikaze drones.
AEVEX Executives Cite Middle East Record And Layered Defense
Murali Krishnan, AEVEX's chief growth officer, said the company has delivered 350 systems in the Middle East and logged more than 25,000 operating hours. He called local production in Taiwan the most important form of resilience, since equipment could reach the front without long-distance shipping in wartime.
Craig Anders, senior vice president for growth, said the products could support an island-style defense and Taiwan's layered defense approach.
CIRC Chair Says Deal Goes Beyond Supply Chain Role
CIRC Chairwoman Wu Hsiu-hui described the two companies as technology-transfer partners, not supplier and customer. She said AEVEX was drawn to CIRC's optical payload design, which she said meets international standards, and that the related technology has cleared U.S. export control rules and been transferred. She called the deal a new model of Taiwan-U.S. industrial cooperation.
CIRC went public with the partnership now, Wu said, because the products are ready. The companies expect to bid on Taiwanese military tenders and pursue customers abroad.
Social Media Links & Editor Tag - Penny