UK MoD to supply 120,000 UAVs to Ukraine in 2026

A Windracers Ultra heavy-lift UAV in operation at night at an undisclosed location in Ukraine in 2025. (Windracers )

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) will supply at least 120,000 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Ukraine in 2026, with deliveries already underway in April 2026, according to a 15 April MoD press release.

The new delivery will include thousands of long-range strike UAVs, intelligence and reconnaissance platforms, as well as logistics and maritime platforms. All of the UAVs are battle-proven on Ukraine's frontline, according to the MoD press release.

The majority of the UAVs will be supplied by British-based companies including Tekever, Windracers and Malloy Aeronautics, as per the release. Simon Muderack, CEO of Windracers, said in a 15 April statement, “Windracers Ultra provides Ukraine with a resilient, dual-use heavy-lift platform offering long-range operational support.” Windracers did not provide further details to Janes on the platforms being sent to Ukraine.

Windracers

In October 2025, Muderack told Janes that Windracers provided dozens of its Ultra UAVs to Ukraine with a planned “significant uptick over the next 12 months [until September 2026]”.

The Ultra heavy lift UAV was configured to fly up to 2,000 km while carrying a 200 kg payload, the company announced at a launch event in London in January. Previously, the platform had a range of up to 1,000 km and a payload capacity of 150 kg. The Ultra platform is capable of fully autonomous flight by using its self-managing “end-to-end” mission control software. A number of sensors including GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) antennas, updates to electro-optical (EO) and infrared (IR) cameras were added for the integration of the autonomous capability.

Tekever