Swarmer, Inc ("Swarmer") (NASDAQ:SWMR), a drone autonomy platform company that has supported more than 100,000 real-world combat missions in Ukraine since April 2024, today announced it has signed a nonbinding memorandum of understanding with Vectus Air Defense Systems, a company in which Swarmer holds a 20% interest, to manufacture, sell and deploy end-to-end air defense systems in eligible markets, subject to applicable export-control, sanctions, procurement, and other governmental requirements.

Swarmer intends to establish an air defense system manufacturing facility in Poland. Under the memorandum, Vectus has confirmed its intent to purchase and deploy at least 40 Swarmer-built systems in year one and 80 or more in year two following the start of production.

"We intend to manufacture an end-to-end solution that includes radars, cameras, fire control and effectors to target a variety of threats, including newer jet-powered Shahed-type attack drones," said Alex Fink, Swarmer U.S. CEO and president. "The systems use combat-proven Gatling-type rotary cannons, capable of firing 20mm rounds at a rate of up to 6,000 rounds per minute, as the last line of defense."

Fink estimates each system will retail at approximately $5 million to $6 million. Gun-based kinetic effectors are intended to significantly reduce the cost per kill compared with multimillion-dollar precision-guided missiles. Historically, drones are much cheaper than the missiles used to intercept them, whereas 20mm ammunition is relatively inexpensive and widely available.