- US factories are preparing to manufacture Ukraine’s combat-tested MAGURA naval drones domestically
- The MAGURA V7 reportedly destroyed an aerial target using Sidewinder missile technology
- Oregon and South Carolina will host future MAGURA drone production facilities
The Ukrainian defense company UFORCE has signed an agreement with the American boat builder RECONCRAFT to manufacture the combat-proven MAGURA naval drones domestically.
Reports from The Wall Street Journal has claimed that the memorandum of understanding was recently signed at the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, where production is planned at factories in Oregon and South Carolina.
The project will have the ultimate goal of building hundreds and potentially thousands of units annually.
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A battle-tested platform is moving to American soil
MAGURA drones gained international recognition after repeated attacks helped push a large part of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet away from 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 engaging helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.
RECONCRAFT builds combat craft for US and partner special operations forces, while UFORCE developed the MAGURA program from scratch.
Under the partnership, both companies will contribute production equipment, materials and personnel to support the new production lines in both states.
“Partnering with UFORCE combines our manufacturing expertise and capabilities with the battle-proven autonomy of the MAGURA platform,” said Joe Silkowski, co-founder of RECONCRAFT.
This allows us to “deliver greater capability to U.S. warfighters faster than developing a new system from scratch.”
The deal follows increased Pentagon interest in cheaper autonomous platforms after recent conflicts in Iran revealed how expensive drone warfare can be.
Combat experience drives wider international interest
Ukraine reported what it described as the world’s first successful naval drone strike against an air target in late 2024 using a MAGURA V7 armed with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles.
In April 2026, MAGURA unmanned surface vessels also participated in the US-Philippines Balikatan military exercise, reportedly sinking a target ship during a live-fire demonstration in the Luzon Strait.
“Today’s combat environments show that autonomous warfighting capabilities are a must-have,” said UFORCE CEO Oleg Rogynskyy.
“UFORCE is uniquely positioned to deliver capabilities already tested by some of the world’s most sophisticated militaries under the most demanding battlefield conditions.”
“By working with RECONCRAFT, we will help ensure that these proven autonomous capabilities become available to the United States,” added Sean Plankey, CEO of UFORCE USA.
“This is exactly the kind of industrial partnership that the Arsenal of Democracy is designed to enable.”
At the time of writing, neither UFORCE nor RECONCRAFT has indicated how US production may affect the price of future MAGURA drones.
Manufacturing in the United States is typically more expensive than overseas alternatives, a dynamic long observed across industries from electronics to textiles.
It is one of the reasons why American companies like Apple choose to build their gadgets outside the country, with lower production costs and established supply chains.
Whether this same cost pressure will raise the price of US-built MAGURA drones compared to their Ukrainian-made counterparts is not yet known.
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