- U.S. factories are preparing to domestically manufacture Ukraine’s battle-proven MAGURA naval drones.
- MAGURA V7 allegedly destroyed an aerial target using Sidewinder missile technology
- Oregon and South Carolina to host future MAGURA drone production facilities
Ukrainian defense company UFORCE has signed an agreement with American shipbuilder RECONCRAFT to manufacture the combat-proven MAGURA naval drones in the country.
Reports of The Wall Street Journal has stated that the memorandum of understanding was recently signed at the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington, and that production is planned at facilities in Oregon and South Carolina.
The project will ultimately aim to build hundreds, and potentially thousands, of units annually.
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Combat-proven platform moves to US soil
MAGURA drones gained international recognition after repeated strikes helped drive much of the Russian Black Sea Fleet out of Crimea.
The MAGURA family has since expanded beyond strike missions to include aerial drone launches, mine countermeasures and anti-submarine sonar towing, with the MAGURA V7 variant also capable of attacking helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.
RECONCRAFT builds combat ships for US special operations forces and their partners, while UFORCE developed the MAGURA program from the beginning.
Under the partnership, both companies will contribute manufacturing equipment, materials and personnel to support the new production lines in both states.
“The partnership with UFORCE combines our manufacturing expertise and capabilities with the combat-proven autonomy of the MAGURA platform,” said Joe Silkowski, co-founder of RECONCRAFT.
This allows us to “deliver greater capability to American warfighters faster than developing a new system from scratch.”
The deal follows the Pentagon’s growing interest in lower-cost autonomous platforms after recent conflicts in Iran revealed how costly drone warfare can be.
Combat experience generates broader international interest
Ukraine reported what it described as the world’s first successful naval drone strike against an aerial target in late 2024 using a MAGURA V7 armed with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles.
In April 2026, MAGURA unmanned surface ships also participated in the Balikatan military exercise between the United States and the Philippines, reportedly sinking a target ship during a live-fire demonstration in the Luzon Strait.
“Today’s combat environments show that autonomous combat capabilities are imperative,” said UFORCE Executive Director Oleg Rogynskyy.
“UFORCE is uniquely positioned to deliver capabilities already proven by some of the world’s most sophisticated militaries in the most demanding battlefield conditions.”
“By working with RECONCRAFT, we will help ensure these proven autonomous capabilities are available to the U.S.,” added Sean Plankey, CEO of UFORCE USA.
“It’s exactly the kind of industry partnership that the Arsenal of Democracy is designed to enable.”
At the time of writing, neither UFORCE nor RECONCRAFT have indicated how US production could influence the price of future MAGURA drones.
Production in the United States is often more expensive than alternatives abroad, a dynamic that has long been seen in industries ranging from electronics to textiles.
It’s one of the reasons why American companies like Apple choose to manufacture their devices outside the country, with lower manufacturing costs and established supply chains.
It is not yet known whether this same cost pressure will increase the price of American-made MAGURA drones compared to their Ukrainian-made counterparts.
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